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Donated Dental Program (DDS) of Acadiana (Acadia, Avoyelles, Evangeline, Iberia, Lafayette, St. Landry, St. Martin, St. Mary, Terrebonne and Vermilion parishes)
Donated Dental Services (DDS) - A Program of Dental Lifeline Network, Louisiana
Donated Dental Services (DDS) - A Program of Dental Lifeline Network, Louisiana
 Louisiana participates in the Donated Dental Services (DDS) program as a collaborative, direct way that the dental profession reaches out to the elderly and individuals with special needs. If you would like to volunteer for the program, go to www.dentallifeline.org or call the Louisiana DDS coordinator Lori Scott at 800-946-6016 or 504-940-5200. Patients interested in applying for the program should also contact Lori Scott.
In the fiscal year 2010-2011, the program goal is to provide $750,000 worth of donated treatment to 298 individuals who are disabled, aged or medically at-risk statewide: $400,000 for 137 people in the New Orleans area and $350,000 for 161 people in the rest of the state (excluding Lafayette area that has a separate program, see info below). Since inception, Louisiana dentists and labs have donated
over $7 million worth of comprehensive treatment for 4,480 people.
New Orleans is divided from the rest of the state because United Way of Greater New Orleans and the Joe W. and Dorothy Dorsett Brown Foundation provide services for people in that locale.
Because of the extraordinary compassion of over 2,600 dental laboratories and 12,000 dentists across the country, DDS tends to the essential and comprehensive dental care needs of our nation’s most vulnerable people; disabled, elderly or medically-compromised individuals who cannot afford necessary treatment nor get public aid. DDS patients have slipped through the cracks of Medicaid and Medicare programs with nowhere else to turn.
Participation could not be easier. Dentists and labs take care of the patients, DDS does everything else; no headaches, no red tape. A DDS coordinator is the liaison between the patient, the labs and the dentists, answering any and all questions, assisting the patient, the lab and the dentist with anything and everything. The goal of DDS is to return patients to good oral health, enabling them to reach an affordable maintenance level.
2010 Active Louisiana
Donating Dentists
Donated Dental Program (DDS) of Acadiana
 The Donated Dental Program (DDS), is comprised of volunteer dentists throughout Acadiana (Acadia, Avoyelles, Evangeline, Iberia, Lafayette, St. Landry, St. Martin, St. Mary, Terrebonne and Vermilion parishes) and provides free dental treatment for patients who have been approved for the program. These volunteer dentists offer their office and staff out of the kindness of their hearts. In 2010, DDS of Acadiana saw 184 patients, donating $110,005.72 worth of dental care.
Criteria for eligibility: Patients must be 62 years or older with household income at or below the Federal Poverty Guidelines (FPG) and not working or 18 years plus receiving SSI and/or SSD due to a severe disability which prevents the person from working, with household income at or below FPG. Patients must be ambulatory. Examples of Disabilities: mental retardation, muscle disorders, Cerebral Palsy, visual and hearing impairments, epilepsy, developmental disabilities, spinal cord injuries (no other type of back injury) and mental illnesses (bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, etc.). Examples of Medically Compromising Conditions: cancer, renal/kidney disease, diabetes, heart disease and liver disease. Proof of Gross Income (required for all household members): bank statement; award letter for Social Security, SSI and SSD, retirement; pensions; and, any other income statements. The program does not offer full mouth extractions, posterior (back) root canals, dentures or bridge work.
For more information contact: 232-HELP/LA 211 Donated Dental Program, P.O. Box 52763, Lafayette, LA 70505, call 337-232-4357, fax 337-232-1960 or e-mail:
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