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Community Health Center

Altura Centers for Health Woodville

16686 Road 168, Porterville, CA 93257-9246

559-686-9097 Directions Website

Altura Centers for Health Woodville is a community health center dental clinic in Porterville, CA, operated by Altura Centers for Health, which runs 3 clinics in California.

The health center is open about 45 hours a week, though dental sessions are usually a subset of that.

Clinic Details

Address16686 Road 168, Porterville, CA 93257
Phone559-686-9097
Operated byAltura Centers for Health
ProgramHealth Center Program (federally funded)
Site scheduleFull-Time
Operating calendarYear-Round

Planning Your Visit

16686 Road 168, Porterville, CA 93257

The published number is 559-686-9097. It may be a shared scheduling line. Say which site you mean and that you want dental rather than medical, or you can be booked into the wrong queue.

Things to settle on the phone first: 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, and what to bring for the sliding fee application.

Dental Services

Service and coverage information recorded for this clinic includes:

  • Medicaid

Treatments offered and insurance accepted change over time, and services not listed here may still be available. Contact the clinic to confirm what is currently offered.

Costs and Coverage

Charges are set against household income and household size rather than a fixed fee schedule. Because Altura Centers for Health sets the thresholds itself, the same household can pay different amounts at two different health centers. Ask them to run your household through it before you commit to a treatment plan. Our guide to applying for the discount lists the documents to bring.

This clinic has a Medicaid billing registration on file, which is a good sign but not a guarantee for your particular plan. What California Medicaid covers for adults is a state decision and has been cut and restored in several states; for children the benefit is required nationally. The Medicaid dental page covers how to check yours.

Common Questions

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.

Can I book online?

This clinic publishes a website, linked at the top of this page, and some health centers take dental requests through a portal or a form. Calling is still usually faster for dental, because the dental schedule is often held separately from the one an online form writes into.

I have private dental insurance. Is it worth using here?

Often yes, and the two combine: the clinic bills your plan and the discount applies to what is left. Ask whether they are in network for your plan, because out-of-network billing can leave you paying more than the discounted cash price.

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.

Will they see me if I still owe them money?

Usually yes for pain and for anything urgent, though a clinic may ask you to agree a plan for the balance before booking routine work. An old balance is worth raising on the phone instead of discovering it at the desk; it is often smaller after a discount is applied than the letter suggests.

What if I need a specialist they do not have?

You would normally be referred out, and a referral from a health center does not carry the discount with it — the outside specialist charges their own fee. Ask what the referral would cost before starting anything that depends on it, because that is the point where an affordable plan often stops being affordable.

Other Clinics Operated by Altura Centers for Health

Altura Centers for Health operates 2 other clinics elsewhere in California. Asking the scheduling line which site can see you soonest is usually faster than calling each in turn; the shortest wait is not always the closest clinic. Once your discount is assessed at one of its sites, the others normally honor it without a second application. 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 straight-line, not driving. Waiting times differ sharply between neighbors, so call more than one.

Confirmed Payment Options

Income-Based FeesMedicaid

Call Altura Centers for Health Woodville

Confirm current dental services, appointment availability, costs and accepted insurance directly with the clinic.

559-686-9097

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