HELENA, Mont. — The Montana VA Health Care System broke ground Wednesday on a new dental facility in Helena aimed at expanding access to care as the number of veterans eligible for VA dental services continues to grow.
The more than $8.2 million facility will be Montana VA’s first standalone dental clinic in the state. It will be built off Cromwell Dixon Lane, across from Costco, and is expected to significantly increase the amount of dental care the VA can provide in Helena.
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“Our number of veterans eligible for VA care, especially in the dental eligibility criteria, they’ve doubled in the last five years, so we need more space,” said Montana VA Executive Director Kimberly Adkins. “We need modern space. Our veterans deserve that.”
Montana VA says it currently has 11,425 dental-eligible veterans in fiscal year 2026, up from 5,451 in fiscal year 2019, an increase of nearly 110%.
The 12,758-square-foot facility will expand the VA from four operatories to 12. That includes two specialty operatories designed to accommodate surgery, specialty care and patients with disabilities or limited mobility.
The facility will have 19 treatment rooms as well as lab and X-ray space. It will provide a full range of dental services for eligible veterans, including routine exams, cleanings, X-rays, fillings, extractions, root canals, gum treatments, dentures and oral cancer screenings.
For American Legion Department Adjutant Duane Cunningham, expanding access is particularly important in a state as large as Montana.
“It’s huge. Access makes a difference. It’s a lifesaving measure,” Cunningham said.
Cunningham is one of the more than 11,000 veterans in Montana currently eligible for VA dental care. He said he waited three months for his first appointment.
Wait times can still reach 20 to 30 days depending on the procedure, according to Adkins. She said the VA hopes the additional capacity will bring those waits down to single digits once the new clinic is fully operational.
But appointment availability is only part of the challenge. Montana’s size can make accessing care difficult for veterans who live far from VA facilities.
“We’ve got veterans in every corner of the state,” Cunningham said. “Access will turn people off to the VA.”
Montana VA says its in-house dental capacity has continued to increase despite its limited physical space, growing more than 73% since fiscal year 2022.
Nationwide, more than 880,000 veterans received dental care through the VA last year.
For Cunningham, the new Helena facility represents more than additional space and shorter waits.
“There is nobody more deserving than the veteran standing in front of you,” he said. “That’ll be game-changing. That really will be game-changing.”
The project has a construction cost of $8,288,470, with TWH Helena Mob LLC serving as the contractor.
Officials hope construction will be completed around this time next year. Veterans with questions about dental eligibility can contact the VA for more information or visit their website here.
