BizBeat: Aspen Dental now open

Dr. Jeffrey Gaffney is now seeing patients at Jefferson City's new Aspen Dental.

The nationally branded dental practice opened Dec. 29 at 2226 Missouri Blvd. in a new building at the former location of Panera Bread.

"Aspen Dental likes to go into areas of great dental need. Certainly Mid-Missouri is underserved, especially Cole County," said Gaffney, a graduate of the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Dentistry who has practiced dentistry in Columbia since 2014.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has identified 105 of 114 counties in Missouri as dental health professional shortage areas based on distance, cost and number of dental professionals, Gaffney said.

"I like to make sure to give back to the community that has served me so much, so going to an area where there is great dental need is not only a good business decision but certainly the right thing to do," he said.

Aspen Dental provides general dentistry services by appointment and on a walk-in basis. The practice also offers free new-patient exams and X-rays for patients without dental insurance.

To provide better access to dental care, Aspen Dental has extended office hours - open 7:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Monday through Wednesday and 10 a.m.-8 p.m. on Thursdays. The practice also operates one Saturday a month - this month on Jan. 28.

Aspen Dental also has an on-site dentures lab to provide fast turnaround for patients, as well as the Healthy Mouth Movement, a community-giving initiative to provide free dental care for veterans.

 

Know of any business happenings around Jefferson City? Let us know at [email protected].