SIU School of Dental Medicine receives Center of Excellence Award from LIBERTY Dental Plan and is recognized by Illinois Senator William Haine and Representative Daniel Beiser

LIBERTY Dental Plan (LIBERTY) is a full service dental benefits company that has been providing dental services to Medicaid beneficiaries across the U.S. since 2005 and in Illinois since 2014, when the State authorized the Medicaid dental managed care program.

LIBERTY administers dental benefits for its Illinois medical plan partners including Harmony and NextLevel Health Plans. Under the leadership of its founding dentist, Amir Neshat D.D.S., LIBERTY is committed to providing quality dental benefits with a focus on total body care that will lead to happier and healthier lives for Illinois Medicaid members.

 

LIBERTY is only able to administer quality oral healthcare through our partnership with Illinois dental providers. We recognize that the best patient care comes from a network of local dentists who have proven their commitment to providing appropriate and timely care for the community they serve.

 

Over the past two years, LIBERTY has worked closely with community dentists who consistently have demonstrated their commitment and dedication to quality care; and now LIBERTY wishes to recognize these outstanding dental providers with our “Center of Excellence Award.” LIBERTY selects “Centers of Excellence” through a rigorous evaluation process including, but not limited to, reviews of office safety and compliance, appropriate delivery of dental services compared to regional utilization patterns, high member satisfaction which leads to loyalty and continuity of care, access and availability of appointments, and low member grievances and complaints.

 

“On behalf of our LIBERTY team, I wish to congratulate these outstanding dental providers and we look forward to a long and quality relationship to improve oral health and the lives of Illinois’s most vulnerable Medicaid population,” said company Founder and President, Dr. Amir Neshat.

 

“Harmony Health Plan is proud to honor these outstanding dental providers,” said Dr. Robin L. Jones, Medical Director of Harmony Health Plan. “Preventive and maintenance dental care is a key element of an integrated health delivery system that helps our members live better, healthier lives.”

 

Senator Haine stated “I am proud to see the SIU Dental School receive this distinguished award. The school is well deserving of this honor as they are certainly a “Center of Excellence”. I am honored to be able to be a participant in the award ceremony, and I am honored to represent such an outstanding school that trains future dentists who will go on to be at the top of their field.” Representative Beiser commented “The SIU Dental School has once again demonstrated its top tier status by being named a "Center of Excellence” and it is a distinct privilege to have the school in my home town and in my district.”

 

In response, Bruce Rotter (Dean of SIU School of Dental Medicine) said "Southern Illinois University School of Dental Medicine truly appreciates being honored for our commitment to patient care. We at the school strive to provide the highest quality patient care possible while educating the practitioners of the future.

 

Recognition of our faculty, staff and students by Liberty Dental for our dedicated efforts to increase access to care is certainly an encouragement. We at the school plan to continue in our efforts to deliver quality patient care to the widest population."

 

On Monday March 6th, Senator Haine and Representative Beiser, Judy Bowlby (LIBERTY Senior Manager Government Programs), and Kelly Pulliam (Liberty Director of Provider Relations) presented the Center of Excellence Award to Randall Pembrook (Chancellor SIUE), Bruce Rotter (Dean) and Ken Rawson (Associate Dean for Academic Affairs) of SIU Dental School. Also attending the presentation were Mr. Ken Holbert, Dr. Bert Milligan (Assistant Dean for Clinics), Dr. Kathy Shafer (Director of Clinic Education), Dr. Eric Langenwalter (Assistant Dean for Information Technology), Dr. Cornell Thomas (Assistant Dean for Student Services), Martha Saboff, Elizabeth Phelps, Jeannie Carpenter and Julie Devine. The SIU School of Dental Medicine students manage approximately 35,000 patient visits each year at its patient clinics in Alton and East St. Louis. In addition, students offer oral health treatment, screenings and education to more than 10,000 people annually through a wide variety of off-campus community outreach events. These opportunities provide students the training they need to graduate and become highly skilled dentists. The School of Dental Medicine is a vital oral health care provider for residents of southern and central Illinois, and the St. Louis metropolitan region.