Data transparency
Sources, methodology, and limitations
These notes explain what each number represents, which records must remain separate, and where the data cannot answer whether a patient can get an appointment.
Methodology version
2026.5-public-sources
Individual dentist records
Provider counts use active individual dental-provider records in each inventoried city. California credential records are tracked separately so enrollment, licensure, and office availability are not presented as the same fact.
Practice directory
The consumer directory is a separate, quality-gated office listing set. Directory office counts are shown only as a navigation aid and are not used as the numerator in provider-per-capita rankings.
Medi-Cal Dental
Medi-Cal enrollment counts use the latest available public Medi-Cal Dental fee-for-service provider data. Enrollment does not guarantee that an office is accepting new patients; always call the office and plan to confirm.
Office hours
Saturday and extended-hours flags belong to the separate office directory. The Saturday report is excluded from public discovery until those fields come from a persistable source with adequate coverage.
Population denominators
City populations are California Department of Finance E-1 estimates (January 1, 2025), except Winton and Planada, which use the 2020 Census because they are census-designated places. County per-10k rates use the combined population of catalog cities we have inventoried in that county — not the full county population — so unincorporated places and cities we have not ingested are not in the denominator.
Access scores
The access score is shown only where provider supply, Medi-Cal enrollment, shortage designation, and office-hours coverage meet the report's completeness checks. Areas with incomplete inputs remain unscored.
California comparison
California has roughly 7.8 professionally active dentists per 10,000 residents (about 78 per 100,000; KFF / ADA, 2024–2026). NPPES also counts individual providers, but it is an enrollment registry rather than an active-workforce survey, so the figures are contextual rather than exactly like-for-like.
Monthly snapshots
Monthly change reports compare approved public listing facts with the previous stored month. The first month establishes a baseline.
Languages
Language information comes from an official provider record, the practice website, or a claimed profile. Availability can vary by day; confirm when scheduling.
Corrections and reuse
Cite Central Valley Dentists, the report title, its displayed as-of date, and the methodology version above. Public source records remain subject to their original agencies’ terms. To report an incorrect record or request a machine-readable extract, contact us.