Some 25 million Americans live in communities federally designated as dental care shortage areas - where community health centers are many times the safety net for a large geographic area. However, less than a third of federally supported community and migrant health centers have dental facilities. It is especially important in these communities that a dental safety net exists to fill the gaps primarily for the moderate and low-income families. The dental safety net includes community-based dental clinics, dental schools, school-based programs, hospital clinics and mobile vans that serve to increase access to dental care. The safety net is necessary in many communities where there are limited dentists or if families are unable to pay for dental services due to lack of insurance (the safety net provides services regardless of an individual's ability to pay).