Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon has pledged enough money to add 17 new students to the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Dentistry from fall 2010 to fall 2013, his office announced.
The funding will be part of a $40 million Caring for Missourians initiative to increase the number of healthcare providers in the state.
Currently, 95 Missouri counties are considered health professional shortage areas, which means they lack necessary primary care, mental, or dental health providers based on the county's population.
"During these difficult economic times, Missouri still faces a critical need for trained and educated professionals in a variety of healthcare fields," Gov. Nixon said in a press release. "And that need is only going to increase as our population ages in the years to come. Caring for Missourians will help us train the next generation of medical professionals to meet the healthcare needs of tomorrow, while also helping turn our economy around today."
Through Caring for Missourians, each of Missouri's two- and four-year public colleges and universities will receive a specific grant as part of their appropriation for the next fiscal year, which begins July 1, 2009. The institutions will be responsible for developing a specific plan to maximize the benefit of those funds for expanding the capacity of their health career training programs, and the schools will be responsible for meeting defined accountability targets.
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