The Maine Bureau of Veterans’ Services and eight participating clinics, including the UMA Dental Hygiene Clinic in Bangor, plan to provide dental hygiene services to veterans unable to afford preventive dental care.

The Maine Veterans’ Dental Network, which is overseen by the bureau, received a $35,000 grant from Northeast Delta Dental to serve veterans who do not otherwise have dental coverage or cannot afford dental care.

The UMA Dental Hygiene Clinic received $4,000 of this grant funding to provide preventive dental hygiene services, such as cleanings, for qualifying veterans. This program will also provide UMA’s dental hygiene program students with valuable clinical experiences under the supervision of UMA’s Dental Hygiene faculty.

To receive dental hygiene services, veterans must provide a copy of their DD-214 (discharge papers) to the clinic and grant permission to forward the document to the veterans’ services bureau for inclusion in its database. If veterans do not have a copy of their DD-214, veteran services can assist them in acquiring one by submitting the State of Maine Request Form located on the MBVS website at maine.gov.

To make an appointment at the UMA Dental Hygiene Clinic at 201 Texas Ave., Bangor, eligible veterans can call 207-262-7872 or visit uma.edu to schedule a free dental cleaning, including X-rays and fluoride treatment.

To locate the other participating dental clinics, visit maine.gov.