Miles for Smiles dental program for children gets $90,000 grant

BANGOR – The big, blue Miles for Smiles mobile dental clinic for children will continue to be a familiar sight in rural areas of northern Maine, thanks to a grant from the state’s largest health care insurer.

Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Maine, in conjunction with the Anthem Foundation, has awarded $90,000 to support the continued operations of the dental unit, which has provided care to more than 8,400 youngsters since it first hit the road in November 2003.

Staffed with dentists and hygienists from the Penobscot Community Health Center on Union Street, the mobile clinic has traveled more than 30,000 miles to set up in the parking lots of rural schools and hospitals.

Miles for Smiles will treat any child, regardless of the family’s ability to pay, according to Vicki Rusbolt, public relations director at PCHC. From routine cleanings to X-rays and extractions, children can get a wide range of services, she said. For kids enrolled in MaineCare, the state’s Medicaid program, dental services are paid by the state. Families not covered pay for services according to an income-based sliding-fee scale.

The mobile clinic sets up in areas where dental services for children are hard to come by, Rusbolt said. Current sites include Houlton, Skowhegan, Pittsfield, Presque Isle and Dover-Foxcroft.

Mark Ishkanian, spokesman for Anthem, said the insurance company will phase out its support of the program over the next two years, as originally planned. Anthem will have contributed about $1.4 million by then, he said, including the cost of purchasing and outfitting the 43-foot recreational vehicle that houses the dental clinic.

Rusbolt said Miles for Smiles will continue to provide services as long as funding can be secured to keep it on the road. PCHC owns the mobile unit and already covers much of the program’s expenses, she said. The nonprofit health care organization is working with community hospitals and other potential supporters to line up funding for the future.