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For nearly 16 years, Grace* and her mother, Denise, have made the long trip to Apple Tree Dental in Fergus Falls, Minnesota.
The drive is nearly 200 miles—about three hours each way.
Grace is 18 and has developmental delays, autism, anxiety, ADHD, epilepsy, and other support needs that make finding the right dental provider especially important. She needs a team that understands how to help her feel safe, communicates in ways that work for her, and can provide sedation when more advanced treatment is needed.
That is what Grace found at Apple Tree Dental.
The team has cared for her since she was 2 years old. Over time, Grace has built trust with the providers and staff who know her best. She has worked hard to develop communication and confidence in the dental chair, and her mother has continued making the difficult trip because she could not find a closer clinic that both accepted Medicaid and was equipped to provide the specialized care she needs.
Grace needed a full-coverage crown to protect a fractured tooth affected by infection, pain, and decay. Without treatment, the infection would worsen and affect her long-term health. But while Grace has Medicaid coverage, her plan does not cover the crown her dental team recommended.
For families raising children with special needs, finding dental care can require far more than scheduling an appointment. It can mean searching for a provider with the right training, traveling long distances, arranging time away from work or school, and trying to cover treatment costs that insurance will not pay.
That access gap can have serious consequences. A recent study of nearly 25 million Medicaid-enrolled children found that children with special health care needs were 28% more likely than other children to visit an emergency department for a nontraumatic dental problem, such as pain, decay, or infection. Emergency rooms may help manage pain or infection, but they generally cannot provide the ongoing dental treatment a child needs.
For Grace, having a trusted dental home—and the ability to return to it—helps prevent a manageable problem from becoming a medical crisis.
Denise has done everything she can to make sure her daughter receives care from a team she knows and trusts. But commitment alone could not cover the cost of the crown Grace needed.
When Apple Tree Dental’s Center Director called Denise to share that Grace had been selected for an In the Gap Program grant from America’s ToothFairy, Denise’s response reflected both the strain her family had been carrying and the relief that help was finally within reach.
“Oh my gosh, that would be amazing,” she said. “I am waiting for my tax return, but it won’t be enough. Anything would be amazing. Thank you for thinking of Grace.”
Our In the Gap Program helps children and teens receive urgent dental treatment when financial hardship, limited insurance coverage, distance, or other barriers leave families unable to afford the care they need.
For Grace, the grant helped cover the treatment needed to save her tooth. It also helped protect something equally important: the relationship she has built with a dental team that understands her needs and helps her feel safe.
No family should have to travel hundreds of miles or face an impossible bill simply to find dental care that meets their child’s needs. Thanks to Solventum, who recently supported our In the Gap Program, Grace can move forward with treatment—and her mother can keep choosing the care that helps her daughter feel understood, supported, and secure.
*Names have been changed to respect patient privacy.
