BINGHAM - It's been at least three years since rural Upper Kennebec Valley has had its own dentist.

And before that, dental services were sparse at best, especially for low income families.

That is all about to change in a couple of weeks with the arrival of a dentist, and by sometime next year, a completed dental clinic.

"There is no dental care at all for people who have MaineCare, essentially, except to have their teeth pulled," said physician Cindy Robertson at the Bingham Area Health Center.

"We can't get any dental care for kids who have MaineCare. Larry going to change all that. It's not just for Bingham it's for the whole region."

"Larry" is Capt. Lawrence H. Jacoby, a dentist and Ready Responder in the U.S. Public Health Service who joined HealthReach Community Health Centers full-time in October.

MaineCare is the state's equivalent of Medicaid, Robertson said.

The new clinic will serve all patients, including those with and without insurance on a sliding scale of payments.

Jacoby, 55, is to begin dental services in Bingham in early December.