FREE Dental Screenings for Atlantic County Kids

Do you have dental insurance?

How long has it been since your kids had a dental check up?

If you lack dental insurance for your children or need assistance with your children getting regular cleanings, the Give Kids a Smile Campaign returns this year. On Feb. 3, 2012, dentists across New Jersey will participate by providing children with FREE dental cleanings and other services. For a list of available locations in New Jersey, click here. A listing of Atlantic County locations will be at the end of this post.

Consider these stats from Dental Plans.com

• More than 50 percent of uninsured and 30 percent of insured Americans skipped necessary dental care visits during the last year due to financial burdens, according to a 2009 Harris Interactive/HealthDay Poll.

• At least one in five U.S. children go without annual dental care and most states lack key policies to ensure access to cost-saving preventive treatments, according to a 2010 study by the Pew Center on the States.
• Only 48 percent of children entering kindergarten have seen a dentist within the past year, and 52 percent ages six to eight have tooth decay, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control.
• According to the Academy of General Dentistry (AGD), more than 51 million school hours are lost each year due to dental-related illness.
• Tooth decay is the most common and the most preventable disease in children, according to the AGD. Tooth decay is five times more common than asthma and seven times more common than hay fever.
• Results from the most recent Gallup-Healthways poll of 355,334 Americans indicate that 34 percent of the population did not visit a dentist last year at all.

The New Jersey Dental Association recognizes how hard it is for families to provide their children with dental care. They will partner with dentists across the country in the Give Kids a Smile Campaign. Next Friday, Feb. 3, four Atlantic County dentists will provide children, 12 and under, regardless of income, FREE of charge, with the following:

• oral hygiene instruction;
• screenings, cleanings;
• x-rays;
• fillings;
• extractions;
• fluoride treatments;
• stainless steel crowns;
• and much more.

Unlike other years, this year appointments are required. Please call the locations nearest you NOW to make that appointment. Some offices are open all day for the services.  Others for half the day.

In Atlantic County the following dentists are participating in the Give Kids a Smile Campaign.

• UMDNJ at Galloway – 609-652-0501
• UMDNJ Cronin Dental Center, Northfield – 609-645-5814
• Island Dental, Margate – 609-822-0911
• Dr. David I. Kalter, Linwood – 609-927-8960