Community Health Center
East County Wellness Center
8530 La Mesa Blvd STE 306, La Mesa, CA 91942-0967 0 miles away
Community Health Center
La Mesa Family Health Center
8530 La Mesa Blvd, Ste 200, La Mesa, CA 91942-0966
La Mesa Family Health Center is a community health center dental clinic in La Mesa, CA, operated by Family Health Centers of San Diego, which runs 10 clinics in California.
The health center is open about 40 hours a week, though dental sessions are usually a subset of that.
Clinic Details
| Address | 8530 La Mesa Blvd, Ste 200, La Mesa, CA 91942 |
|---|---|
| Phone | 619-515-2300 |
| Operated by | Family Health Centers of San Diego |
| Program | Health Center Program (federally funded) |
Dental Services
What is treated here is not published in a form we can confirm. Examinations, cleanings, fillings and extractions are standard at this kind of clinic. Root canals and dentures are the ones to ask about, since a referral to a private specialist changes the cost completely.
Common Questions
Is anything done for anxiety?
Ask, because the answer changes what the visit costs. Talking it through, longer appointments and numbing gel before the injection are usually free; sedation is a billed extra and does not always fall inside the discount. Our guide to dental anxiety and what it costs covers what to ask for.
How long does the discount last?
A determination usually runs for a set period, often a year, and then has to be reapplied for with current income documents. If your circumstances change in between — a job lost, a household member moving out — ask for a reassessment rather than waiting.
What happens at a first appointment?
Usually an examination with X-rays, sometimes a cleaning, and normally no treatment beyond that — anything found is scheduled for a later visit. Those items are billed separately, which is where unexpected first-visit charges come from. Ask for a written treatment plan with itemized costs before agreeing to anything, so you can stage the work over time if you need to.
Can I get an itemized receipt?
Yes, and ask for one. You need it to claim from an HSA or FSA, to apply to a charitable program, and to get a second opinion on the same plan of work. A receipt that says only a total is not much use for any of those.
Do I have to pay on the day?
Commonly yes, at least the discounted portion, and some clinics ask for it before treatment rather than after. Ask what is due at the first visit, because a discount determination and the first appointment are sometimes separate visits.
Do they see children?
Health centers are generally set up for families and children’s dental coverage is a required Medicaid benefit in every state, so this is usually yes. Minimum ages and whether children are seen on the same days as adults do vary, so ask when booking.
Costs and Coverage
This clinic prices by household income and family size instead of charging everyone the same. Where the thresholds fall is decided by Family Health Centers of San Diego, so what a friend paid elsewhere is not a guide. Have them assess you before treatment is agreed, not after the first appointment. Our guide to applying for the discount lists the documents to bring.
No Medicaid registration has been recorded for this clinic, which is not the same as Medicaid being refused. Adult dental benefits vary by state and California has set its own; children’s dental coverage is mandatory in every state regardless. The Medicaid dental page covers how to check yours.
Dental Providers at This Clinic
Alongside general dentistry, providers registered in orthodontics, for braces and alignment and dental hygiene, for cleanings and preventive care practice at this address. That is not the same as the clinic taking new patients for those treatments, or the discount covering them, so name the treatment when you call.
Planning Your Visit
8530 La Mesa Blvd, Ste 200, La Mesa, CA 91942
The published number is 619-515-2300. This can be a general line rather than the dental desk. Naming both the clinic and the department saves being transferred twice.
Worth confirming before you travel: the dental hours, and which days appointments run, whether new dental patients are being taken, and the current wait, what a first visit costs, before and after any discount, whether your insurance or Medicaid dental plan is accepted, by plan name, and what to bring for the sliding fee application.
Other Clinics Operated by Family Health Centers of San Diego
Family Health Centers of San Diego operates 9 other clinics in 3 other communities in California. The wait differs between them, sometimes by weeks, so ask which site could see you first rather than assuming the nearest is quickest. The income assessment usually transfers between sites in the same organization, which saves repeating the paperwork. What is treated at one site is no guide to another, so confirm with the clinic you actually intend to visit.
Other Dental Clinics Nearby
Distances are as the crow flies. Wait times are set clinic by clinic, so ask each one rather than assuming.
- East County Wellness Center — La Mesa, at the same address
- La Mesa Family Dental Clinic — La Mesa, about 1.3 miles away
- La Maestra Lemon Grove Clinic — Lemon Grove, about 2 miles away
- San Ysidro Health El Cajon/San Diego PACE — El Cajon, about 2.4 miles away
Confirmed Payment Options
Income-Based Fees
Call La Mesa Family Health Center
Confirm current dental services, appointment availability, costs and accepted insurance directly with the clinic.
Nearby Affordable Dental Clinics
Community Health Center
La Mesa Family Dental Clinic
7557 El Cajon Blvd, Suite A, La Mesa, CA 91942-7823 1.3 miles away
Community Health Center
La Maestra Lemon Grove Clinic
7967 Broadway, Lemon Grove, CA 91945-1809 2 miles away
Community Health Center
San Ysidro Health El Cajon/San Diego PACE
875 El Cajon Blvd, El Cajon, CA 92020-5714 2.4 miles away
Before you call
