DEPARTMENT: Public Health
FILE TYPE: Regular Action
TITLE
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Update And Authorization To Execute License Agreement Between Dakota County And Children's Dental Services For Provision Of Dental Services
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RESOLUTION
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WHEREAS, the Dakota County Board of Commissioners must approve all license agreements; and
WHEREAS, for 10 years Dakota County Public Health has a service agreement with Children’s Dental Services (CDS) to offer oral health services of 10-12 appointments once per month at the Northern Service Center and the Western Service Center; and
WHEREAS, information collected from the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services for fiscal year 2024, showed there were approximately 47,430 Dakota County children from birth to 20 years who were eligible to receive dental care through Medical Assistance; and
WHEREAS, the number of Medical Assistance eligible children in Dakota County has increased and the dental and oral health data reflecting the significant need has remained unchanged; and
WHEREAS, it has been determined that a License Agreement is a more appropriate vehicle for making County building space available to Children’s Dental Services to fill this community gap in meeting oral health needs; and
WHEREAS, in order to make it economically viable for Children’s Dental Services to provide this community need, Public Health staff has recommended that the License for the use of County building space be provided at no cost.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, That the Dakota County Board of Commissioners hereby authorizes the County Manager, or delegate, to execute a license agreement with Children’s Dental Services, for space once per month, at both the Northern Service Center and the Western Service Center, substantially as presented, for the use of space, at no cost, for the period of September 1, 2026 through August 31, 2028, subject to approval by the County Attorney’s Office as to form.
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BACKGROUND
Pursuant to Minn. Stat. § 375A.04, the Dakota County Board of Commissioners is, and performs the duties and exercises the powers of, a community health board under Minn. Stat. ch. 145A, including the responsibility to prevent disease and to promote and protect the public health of Dakota County residents. These public health duties include assessing the availability of health-related services and health care providers in the community, identifying gaps in services and convening community partners to improve health systems.
In 2016, Dakota County Public Health created the Oral Health Task Force (OHTF) in response to findings from the 2015 Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) form #416 report which identified a third of Medical Assistance eligible children in Dakota County received dental services. The task force works to improve access to dental care, oral health education, and related resources.
Expanding access has remained a central focus. Dakota County Public Health has partnered with Children’s Dental Services (CDS) for a decade to provide monthly clinics at the Northern and Western Service Centers. Children’s Dental Services (CDS) was selected through the standard County solicitation process. CDS is a non-profit 501 (c)(3) Minnesota Critical Access Dental Provider utilizing grant funds to offset disproportionate cost of free and reduced care to sustain services provided. From 2023-2025, CDS delivered preventative services to 662 children and pregnant women; 94% were on Medical Assistance, 5% were uninsured, and less than 1% had commercial insurance.
The latest data available for Dakota County, fiscal year 2024 CMS-416 showed approximately 47,430 eligible children Birth to 20 years were able to receive dental care through Medical Assistance.
• 34% of children receiving Medical Assistance in Dakota County received preventative dental care.
Public Health is also required to maintain a list of dental providers accepting MA. In 2022, 30 clinics reported accepting new MA clients; in both 2024 and 2025, only 8 clinics confirmed they were accepting new MA clients. While the number of MA eligible children has increased, CMS-416 outcomes have remained unchanged.
In reviewing the process for hosting CDS at County facilities, it was determined that a License Agreement is a more appropriate vehicle for this program (Attachment: Contract Summary Sheet). Because of the economic constraints in providing free or reduced cost dental care, Public Health staff understand that CDS would not be able to continue to travel to and provide services at County facilities if a license fee were charged. In order to continue to make free or reduced cost dental services available to meet this community need, Public Health staff recommend that no license fee be charged to CDS for this limited use of County space. The License Agreement would occur in place of a Services Contract, allowing CDS to continue to provide services at both service center locations to meet the needs of Dakota County eligible children.
RECOMMENDATION
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Staff recommends authorization to execute a License Agreement with Children’s Dental Services allowing access to dental services to eligible children for the period of September 1, 2026 through August 31, 2028.
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FINANCIAL AND STAFFING IMPACTS
No money is exchanged between Dakota County Public Health and Children’s Dental Services.
PREVIOUS BOARD ACTION
None.
ATTACHMENTS
Attachment: Draft License Agreement
Attachment: Presentation Slides
CONTACT
Department Director: Gina Pistulka
Author: Jen Odegard