Livingston County has lots of dentist offices. They just don’t do much good for the county’s most vulnerable residents.

The last dental clinic that accepted Medicaid patients closed suddenly last fall. Bringing more dentists into the community hasn’t filled those gaps.

“You can have dentists, but if they don’t take Medicaid, then you can’t help folks who have low socioeconomic status,” Livingston County Public Health Director Jennifer Rodriguez said. “That’s certainly been a barrier for us.”

But not the only one. Many of the county’s OB-GYNs have moved to higher-population areas, forcing patients to travel more than a half-hour to Rochester.

Livingston County’s health care challenges aren’t unique. In fact, the county may be better off than most rural parts of New York state.

A stat

See Full Page