A technical error was found in the fact sheet entitled, "Distribution and Characteristics of Dentists Licensed to Practice in California, 2008," originally released on Thursday, May 28th. On June 3, the fact sheet was withdrawn from the Center's Web site and an announcement posted in our newsroom. A revised version of the fact sheet has subsequently been released and is currently posted on the Center's Web site.
The revisions, detailed below, do not substantively change the findings: Some California counties experience severe shortages of dentists. Other counties may experience shortages due to a larger number of dentists near retirement age than newly licensed dentists starting their practices in those areas. There are no changes in the number of DHPSAs, the number of community care clinics with dental services, or the number of dentists practicing in those clinics.
The technical error occurred in county border areas where the practice zip code of the dentists crossed two neighboring counties. In the revised fact sheet, all dentist practice addresses are geocoded to avoid incorrect county assignment of dentists. The geocoding also led to a small change in the estimate of the total number of dentists actively practicing in California.
The Center regrets the error.
Users of this data should be aware that this fact sheet presents a snapshot of licensed and actively practicing dentists in California in the third quarter of 2008. However, changes in licensure, practice status, and reported practice location of dentists continuously occur, leading to discrepancies with data obtained in other time periods.
Corrections:
- The number of dentists practicing in California is 26,500, previously estimated at 26,400.
- The number of dentists licensed but not actively practicing is 4,500, previously estimated at 4,600.
- San Benito County has a ratio of 1.5 dentists per 5,000, previously estimated as "less than one".
- Inyo County's has a ratio of 2.2 dentists per 5,000, previously estimated as "less than one".
- Yuba has a ratio of less than one dentist per 5,000, previously not estimated as a shortage area.
- Statewide, 14 percent of active dentists report practicing in more than one location, previously estimated at 15 percent.
- Statewide, 19 percent of dentists have been licensed for 30 or more years, previously estimated as 20 percent.
- Among newly licensed dentists, 44 percent are female, previously estimated as 45 percent.
Please contact UCLA CHPR Communications Team with any questions about the fact sheet.