Orange, Calif.-based Western Dental may be forced to close up to 50 of its practice locations if a proposed cut to the Medi-Cal dental program advances.
Proposition 56, which was passed in 2016, directs revenue from a tobacco tax to increase access to care for individuals who qualify for dental services through Medi-Cal. There is currently a proposal to cut funding from Proposition 56, according to a May 30 news release from Western Dental.
The proposition provided funding that allowed Western Dental to open more than 100 new locations throughout California. The proposal would decrease dental insurance reimbursement rates, making it difficult for the DSO to keep locations open.
Western Dental, a brand of Sonrava Health, currently has 223 locations across the state, has more than 4,000 employees and provides care to more than 1 million Medi-Cal patients each year, the release said.
