naomikritzer | We interrupt your election coverage for dentistry information.

One of my Facebook friends today mentioned that she was having dental issues which were causing her a ton of pain; she has no dental insurance and not a lot of money, and was hoping for a recommendation to a good dentist who'd take payments over time. Back in May, when I volunteered at Project Homeless Connect, I picked up the sheet they offer with a list of Twin Cities-area dentists who offer affordable, discounted, sliding-fee, or free dental care. I have it scanned in as a PDF, and offered to e-mail it to her. I immediately got asked for it by another friend, which is nudging me into doing something I'd intended to do when I picked it up in the first place, which is type it all up and put the info on my LJ, so I can just point people to the link.

I can't vouch for the quality of these providers. I will say that what I've observed at PHC and elsewhere suggests that if you have no money, dentists will suggest extractions rather than trying to save the tooth, and if you DO have money (even if you don't have a lot of money), dentists will put you through endless difficult and expensive procedures to save a tooth that's probably too far gone to salvage.

Cut for length.

Affordable Dentures
8056 Brooklyn Boulevard, Park Square Shopping Center, Brooklyn Park, MN
763-315-1875
For those in need of dentures.
Monday-Friday opens at 7:45 a.m.
Offers complete dentures, partial dentures, repairs, relines, adjustments. Immediate extraction services, emergency extraction services, x-rays, new denture wearer packages and gold crownd on dentures.
Accepts insurance (call to find out if they take yours). If no insurance, cash, check, and credit card are accepted
http://www.affordabledentures.com/office/minneapolis/#fee_schedule

Community University Health Care Clinic
2001 Bloomington Ave S, Minneapolis, MN 55404
612-638-0720
Monday-Friday 7:30-5; call to set up an appointment.
Offers restorative, prosthetic, surgical, and geriatric care.
Accepts most insurance, cash, check, and credit card. Sliding fee scale; call to speak about payment options. Nobody will be turned away based on ability to pay. Bring proof of income.
http://www.ach.umn.edu for info (also medical services)

Hennepin County Medical Center (HCMC)
701 Park Ave, Minneapolis MN 55415
612-873-2370
Monday-Friday 8:30am-4:45pm; appointments and emergency walk-ins.
Offers general, specialty, adult and pediatric care under general anaesthesia, oral surgery and emergency care.
http://www.hcmc.org/clinics/Dental_Oral_Surgery_Clinic/HCMC_CLINICS_288

Indian Health Board Dental Clinic
1315 24th Ave East, Minneapolis MN 55415
612-721-9827
Monday-Friday 7:45-4:45pm. Emergencies should call in on Monday, Tuesday, or Thursday at 7:45 a.m. and are given time to come in.
Offers adult and pediatric general dentistry, preventative care education, emergency treatment and dental specialty referrals.
Accepts MA and most other insurance. Sliding fee scale based on family size and income; no one turned away for inability to pay. Transportation may be provided if 24 hours notice is given. Bright Smiles program for children 6 months - 5 years, and pregnant women.
Note: The website notes that they were set up to provide care for American Indians living in Minneapolis, but it appears that they provide care to anyone in need.
http://www.indianhealthboard.com/

Minnesota Dental Care
718 West 66th St, Richfield MN 55423
612-861-0616
Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday 7am-5pm; Thursday 7-7, Friday 7-3.
Offers preventative, cosmetic, periodontal, orthodontics, oral surgery, restorative, prosthetics, implants, and endodontic treatments.
Accepts most insurance plans. Care credit available for those without insurance.
http://www.dentalhealthcarecenter.com

Northpoint Dental Care
1313 Penn Ave North, Minneapolis MN 55411
Mon, Tues, Thurs, Fri 8-5, Wed 8-7, Sat 8-12.
Offers Preventative, restorative, emergency, digital x-ray, prosthodontic and pedodontic.
http://www.northpointhealth.org

Sharing and Caring Hands
525 North 7th St, Minneapolis MN 55405
612-338-4640
No hours listed. Free and open to those who are uninsured and have no resources.
http://www.sharingandcaringhands.org but the website is mostly for donors. If you want to come here, call and ask about hours, whether you need to bring proof of income, etc.

Southside Dental Clinic
4243 4th Ave S., Minneapolis MN 55409
612-822-9030
Mon-Thurs 7am-8pm, Friday 7am-5pm. Walk-ins welcome.
Offers preventative, restorative, root canals, crown/bridges, dentures/partials and cleaning and x-rays.
Accepts most insurance. Sliding fee scale based off family size and income. Spanish-speaking (also Hmong, Somali, ASL, and many others) staff/interpreters available with notice. Transportation available, please call.
http://www.southsidechs.org

University of MN
515 Delaware St., Minneapolis MN 55405
612-625-2495
Mon-Fri 9-noon and 1:15-4pm.
Offers general and specialty services for adults and children. Children's clinic offers sedation.
http://www.dentistry.umn.edu

Apple Tree Dental
8960 Springbook Drive Ste 150, Coon Rapids MN 55433
763-784-7570
Mon-Fri hours range from 7:30am-6pm.
Offers general dentistry and IV sedation.
Accepts most insurance including all MN Health Care programs; discount program for uninsured.
http://www.appletreedental.org

Donated Dental Services
For the permanently disabled, chronically ill, and elderly.
Address, hours, and available procedures depend on volunteer dentist doing the service; contact Cindy Benson at cbenson@nfdh.org / 651-454-6290.
Serves the disabled and elderly who can't afford needed dental treatment and have no other way to get help.

Children's Dental Services
636 Broadway St SE, Minneapolis MN 55413 (but they have satellite locations all over the metro).
612-746-1530
For children birth through 18, and pregnant women, regardless of ability to pay. Hours vary by location.
Offers comprehensive preventative and restorative care, as well as daily emergency appointments.
Accepts most insurance; sliding fee scale. They may also see people 18-21 with insurance. (Their website emphasizes that they will not turn away children in need based on their parents' inability to pay; if you have a child with a dental emergency, CALL. They will try to see children in pain within 24 hours.)
http://www.childrensdentalservices.org

Century College
3300 Century Ave North, White Bear Lake, MN 55110
651-779-5787
Open Sept-Dec, January-May. Call for days/times.
Offers cleanings, x-rays, assessments, fluoride treatments, sealants, non-surgical treatment for gum problems, and referrals to other clinics for additional care.
$50 for 18-62 years; $25 for 63+ and for 17 and under. Additional fees may be charged for add-on services.
Call to set up an appointment; sometimes they have short-notice appointments. (If you couldn't tell this from the description -- essentially, you're paying a modest fee to get your teeth cleaned and examined by a Dental Hygiene student. I have heard that these are not the world's gentlest cleanings, but they're thorough and inexpensive, at least.)

Community Dental Care St. Paul
828 Hawthorne Ave E., St. Paul, MN 55106
651-774-2959
Mon & Wed, 8am-7pm; Tue & Thur, 8 am-5pm; Fri & Sat, 8am-1pm. Same-day walk-in / emergency appointments available Mon-Thur, 8am-2pm (but not noon-1).
Offers pediatric dentistry, dentures, prosthodontics, endodontic, restorative, preventative, extractions (including most wisdom teeth), teeth whitening, crowns and bridges, minor ortho procedures. Please call about other procedures. No specialty doctors available.
Accepts all state programs and most other insurance; there's a sliding-fee scale (income based). Call and speak with the financial coordinator if you don't have insurance.
http://www.cdentc.org

Community Dental Care - Maplewood
1670 Beam Ave, Maplewood MN 55109
651-925-8400
Open Mon-Thurs 7am-9pm, Fri 7am-6pm. Same-day walk-in /emergency appointments available Mon-Thurs 8 am-2 pm (but not noon-1).
Offers pediatric dentistry, dentures, prosthodontics, endodontic, restorative, preventative, extractions (including most wisdom teeth), teeth whitening, crowns and bridges, minor ortho procedures. Please call about other procedures. No specialty doctors available.
Accepts all state programs and most other insurance; there's a sliding-fee scale (income based). Call and speak with the financial coordinator if you don't have insurance.
http://www.cdentc.org

HealthPartners Senior Dental Clinic
450 Syndicate Street N Suite 300, St. Paul MN 55104
For those 60 and older.
By appointment only, Mon, Thurs, Fri 8am-5:30, Tues-Wed 8am-6pm.
Anyone over 60 can receive services including teeth cleaning, fillings, extractions, crowns and bridges, oral surgery, and dental work.
Accepts most insurance plans but does not offer sliding fee. Call for more info.

Helping Hand Dental Clinic
506 7th St West, St Paul, MN 55104
651-224-7561
Open Mon-Fri, 8:30am-5pm. By appointment.
Cleanings, fillings, extractions (no oral surgery), dentures and crowns.
Most insurance accepted. Sliding fee scale / discount program, can qualify for up to 50% off on some services.
Children 5+ can be treated.
http://www.westsidechs.org

Open Cities Health Clinic
409 Dunlap St N., St. Paul, MN 55104
651-290-9200
135 Manitoba Ave (corner of Rice), St. Paul, MN 55117
651-489-8021
Open Mon, Tues & Thurs 8am-8pm, Weds & Fri 8 am-5pm, Sat 10am-2pm.
General medical and dental services provided at both locations. Medical includes x-rays and chiropractic. Dental includes general services but not impacted teeth or braces.
Will take most insurance; sliding fee scale. Please call billing department to discuss payment options if you don't have insurance.
For dental appointments, you're supposed to call at 8 a.m. to schedule a same-day appointment.
http://www.opencitieshealthcenter.org

The Smile Center
1790 East 7th Street, St. Paul MN 55119 (other locations available)
651-735-0595
Open 365 days a year. 7am-8pm weekdays; 8am-5pm weekends/holidays.
Cosmetic, endodontic, diagnostic, preventative, restorative, periodontal treatment, oral surgery, crowns/bridges, dentures/partials (including repairs), implants, orthodontics.
Accepts most insurance plans; if you have no insurance, there are three levels of benefits offered. Please call to discuss options.
http://www.smilecenterus.com

Union Gospel Mission
435 University Ave. East, St. Paul, MN 55130
651-789-7605
For those who cannot afford dental work under any other program and who have NO dental insurance.
Open Monday 9am-4pm & 6pm-9pm, Tuesday 8-5/6-9, Wed 6-9, Thursday 10-5/6-0, alternate Saturdays 8-2.
Monday, Tuesday, Thursday: fillings, some root canals and cleanings
Monday, Weds, Thursday nights: extractions
Tuesday night: fillings
Saturday morning: children's clinic
NO crowns, dentures, or braces.
Please call on Friday mornings to schedule for the following week. You must be scheduled with an appointment; no walk-ins. For more information, call the number above and follow instructions on the message.

West Side Dental Clinic
478 Robert Street, St. Paul MN 55107
651-602-7575
Monday-Friday 8:30am-5pm. By appointment.
Cleanings, fillings, extractions (no oral surgery), dentures, crowns.
Most insurance accepted; discount program can qualify you for up to 50% off services. Children 5+ can be treated.
http://www.westsidechs.org

I started to provide some socioeconomic commentary here, but you know what, I'm just going to leave it. Here's a list of more-affordable dental care providers in the Twin Cities area. If you live in outstate, check out Apple Tree's website; they have clinics in other parts of the state, as well.

If you wandered to this page by googling for affordable dental care but in fact you live in Kansas or Maine or Nebraska, I have no particularly useful information for you, but you can try:

United Way First Call for Help
Find Food, because the people who work at your local food shelf may have information on other programs in your area. If there are organizations that serve the homeless in your community, they may also be a good resource, even if you're not homeless.
If you are looking for dental care for a child, call your child's school to see if they have information.
If you have ever served in any branch of the U.S. Armed Services, contact the VA.
If you live near the Mexican border, you may be able to get much less expensive care in Mexico. (At clinics like this one.)
Also! It turns out the Affordable Dentures place is a chain. If you visit their website and plug in your zip code, there may be a place not too far from you. Their price sheet is online, and they are genuinely affordable (and they offer partials and implants as well.)

Good luck.