Community Health Center
CENTROMED PALO ALTO CLINIC
9011 Poteet Jourdanton Fwy, San Antonio, TX 78224-2124 3.7 miles away
Community Health Center
CentroMed Berto Guerra Jr. Clinic
5439 Ray Ellison Blvd, San Antonio, TX 78242-2219
CentroMed Berto Guerra Jr. Clinic is a community health center dental clinic in San Antonio, TX, operated by El Centro del Barrio, which runs 7 clinics in Texas.
The health center is open about 53 hours a week, though dental sessions are usually a subset of that.
Clinic Details
| Address | 5439 Ray Ellison Blvd, San Antonio, TX 78242 |
|---|---|
| Phone | 210-922-7000 |
| Operated by | El Centro del Barrio |
| Program | Health Center Program (federally funded) |
Planning Your Visit
5439 Ray Ellison Blvd, San Antonio, TX 78242
The published number is 210-922-7000. 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, whether your insurance or Medicaid dental plan is accepted, by plan name, and what to bring for the sliding fee application.
Dental Services
This clinic has not published a list of the treatments it provides. Expect the routine treatments to be available. The question worth asking is about the expensive ones: root canals, dentures and oral surgery are handled in house at some health centers and referred out at others.
Costs and Coverage
Charges are set against household income and household size rather than a fixed fee schedule. The scale belongs to El Centro del Barrio, not to a national schedule, so the only reliable figure is the one they give you. 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.
No Medicaid registration has been recorded for this clinic, which is not the same as Medicaid being refused. What Texas 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.
Dental Providers at This Clinic
Alongside general dentistry, providers registered in 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.
Common Questions
Can I pay in installments?
Many health centers will arrange this, particularly for dentures or a course of treatment, but it is rarely advertised and you generally have to ask. Agree the amount and the schedule before treatment starts, and ask what happens if you miss one, because that varies more than the plans themselves do.
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.
How do they work out what I pay?
From your household income and family size, checked against a scale the clinic sets itself. That is why a quote from another clinic tells you nothing about this one. Our guide to applying for the discount lists the documents to take.
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.
Do they do root canals, or would I be referred out?
This is the question worth asking before anything else if you already know you need one. Health centers commonly do extractions in-house and refer root canals to a private endodontist at full price, which changes the arithmetic completely. Ask before you start treatment, not after.
What if I cannot get there?
Ask whether the clinic has transport assistance or can tell you what local programs exist — many health centers help with this and it is rarely advertised. Your county health department is the other place that knows.
Size of the Dental Service
El Centro del Barrio provided 46,826 dental visits and 14,921 dental patients in 2025, with the equivalent of 39.52 full-time dental staff. This indicates an established dental service operating regular sessions, although appointment availability still varies by clinic and time of year.
Figures describe the operating organization as a whole, across all of its clinics.
Other Clinics Operated by El Centro del Barrio
El Centro del Barrio operates 6 other clinics in 2 other communities in Texas. 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
These are straight-line distances. Two clinics a mile apart can have very different waits, so it is worth calling both.
- CENTROMED PALO ALTO CLINIC — San Antonio, about 3.7 miles away
- CENTROMED SOUTH PARK DENTAL CLINIC — San Antonio, about 4.4 miles away
- CommuniCare Health Centers - West — San Antonio, about 5.4 miles away
- CENTROMED SOUTHSIDE MEDICAL CLINIC — San Antonio, about 5.7 miles away
Confirmed Payment Options
Income-Based Fees
Call CentroMed Berto Guerra Jr. Clinic
Confirm current dental services, appointment availability, costs and accepted insurance directly with the clinic.
Nearby Affordable Dental Clinics
Community Health Center
CENTROMED SOUTH PARK DENTAL CLINIC
910 Wagner Ave, San Antonio, TX 78211-3213 4.4 miles away
Community Health Center
CommuniCare Health Centers - West
1102 Barclay St, San Antonio, TX 78207-7161 5.4 miles away
Community Health Center
CENTROMED SOUTHSIDE MEDICAL CLINIC
3750 Commercial Ave, San Antonio, TX 78221-3117 5.7 miles away
Before you call
