The Medica Foundation in 2011 awarded $2.5 million in grants to 104 recipients in March 2012, including $100,000 to the Children's Dental Service program in Moorhead, Minn. The grant amounts ranged from $100,000 to $300,000 each.
Children’s Dental Service will expand its school-based dental services program into the Moorhead and Fargo regions in western Minnesota and eastern North Dakota to include a full range of comprehensive, culturally targeted dental services, including both preventive and restorative treatment.
The expanded program will serve an additional 1,500 children and pregnant women annually over the course of 3,000 visits. Preventive and restorative care will be provided on-site in schools and other community centers. Through Children Dental Services’ portable school- and community-based culturally focused dental care model, many barriers families face in accessing dental care, including transportation and language, are eliminated. Emergencies and care requiring general anesthesia will be provided by a dentist with privileges in a local hospital-based setting.
“The Medica Foundation is pleased to make these grants,” said Rob Longendyke, Medica Foundation executive director. “This funding allows us to partner with these important community organizations and together make a significant impact on health concerns important to the people we serve.”
The funding priorities for the Medica Foundation in 2011 included behavioral health, early childhood health, healthy living inappropriate emergency room use and organizational core mission support. More information about grants in these areas is available on the Medica Foundation website.
The Medica Foundation is a nonprofit, charitable grant-making foundation. It is an affiliate of Medica Health Plans, a Minnesota-based nonprofit HMO. The Medica Foundation generally seeks to fund community-based programs and initiatives that can provide sustainable, measurable improvements in the availability, access and quality of healthcare. Medica is in Minneapolis.