Disabled Veteran National Foundation

How Will This Grant Impact Dentistry4Vets

Founded in 2018 by Carmel residents, Dr. George and Patricia Yellich, Dentistry4Vets is a non-profit organization that provides dental care to military veterans. Many milestones have been achieved since 2018, notably the establishment of a fully staffed and state of the art dental clinic at The Marina Wellness Center. All of the milestones have helped with the evolution Dentistry4Vets, however, the need is vast and the clinic needs to open more days a month to support the demand for dental care.

This grant will assist in increasing the number of days the clinic is open from 10 days per month to 14 days per month. Opening more days will help with shorter lead times for dental and hygiene appointments and a faster response to emergency cases, such as patients suffering from pain and infections.

There are over 30,000 military veterans in the tri-counties of Monterey, San Benito and Santa Cruz, most of whom do not qualify for dental care under current VA guidelines. This gap in the care for our veterans has been devastating, leaving thousands suffering from pain associated with dental abscesses and loss of teeth. In many cases, our patients have no teeth at all and dentures that are non- functional. The aftermath is telling as our society has witnessed the decline in the physical and mental health of our veteran population, with a nationwide crisis of over 50,000 homeless veterans.

Our five promises to our veteran patients: 1) Quality of dental care provided by licensed registered dental assistants and an anchor dentist plus volunteer dentists; 2) Comprehensive dental care to include a dental hygiene and a network of specialists such as an oral surgeon, prosthodontists, an orthodontist and endodontists; 3) Continuity of dental care to support long-term, overall, improved health; 4) Cost benefit of care with a 60% to 70% discounted fee schedule; and 5) Ease of care because we only serve veterans
– we understand their special needs and strive to make our clinic a safe and caring environment for them.