Rural Dental Care is in Crisis
Abstract
Access to dental care has been a growing concern in much of America, with rural communities being the hardest hit, leaving residents at risk for oral health complications. These concerns can be directly attributed to the availability of dental care, or lack thereof, in rural counties stretching across the state with more than 1.5 million residents living in counties designated as dental health professional shortage areas. Those shortages are only expected to increase, as over 55% of dentists plan to retire over the next 10 years and one-third of dental hygienists and dental assistants reported they were planning to retire in the next five years.
Recommended Citation
(2025)
"Rural Dental Care is in Crisis,"
Pennsylvania Dental Journal: Vol. 92:
No.
5, Article 5.
Available at:
https://commons.ada.org/pdj/vol92/iss5/5