Heartland Dental Reports Strong First Half of 2025, Driving Growth, Innovation, and Expanded Access to Care

EFFINGHAM, Ill., Aug. 5, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Heartland Dental, the nation's leading dental support organization, is proud to report significant progress in the first half of 2025, marked by continued growth through the Company's affiliation and de novo programs, helping supported doctors and their teams expand access to dental care, and ongoing innovation in non-clinical support services.

Today, Heartland Dental supports over 3,000 doctors across more than 1,800 dental offices in 39 states and the District of Columbia.

"The first half of 2025 has been a period of strong momentum," said Pat Bauer, President and CEO of Heartland Dental. "We have maintained momentum growing our supported footprint and continued to innovate and scale our non-clinical support, while remaining focused on our mission to support doctors and their teams as they deliver the highest quality dental care and experiences to the communities they serve."

Expanding Access Through Strategic Growth
Through the company's footprint growth program, Heartland Dental expanded their footprint in NV, FL, TX, UT, CO, TN, MA, GA, NC, VA, SC, OR, MI, and AZ. Through June 2025, the company collaborated with supported practices to open 38 state-of-the-art de novo offices expanding access to dental care in high-growth communities and completed 13 affiliations.

The continued investment in Heartland Dental's strategic growth program expands access to the company's world class support model and services to more doctors every year. Additionally, Heartland Dental introduced HDflex, a staffing platform powered by Kwikly that enables hygienists and dental assistants to select shifts at Heartland Dental supported practices. This system is intended to offer opportunities for hygienists and dental assistants, facilitate scheduling for supported practices, and ensure patients continue to receive world class care.

Accelerating Innovation and Supporting Care
Heartland Dental continues to advance its commitment to technology that helps supported doctors improve clinical outcomes and simplifies nonclinical workflows. Through strategic collaboration with VideaAI, more than 20,000 supported doctors, hygienists, and team members have access to cutting edge artificial intelligence tools that support and aid in diagnosis, treatment planning, patient education, and insurance processing. This platform helps identify early-stage dental conditions with greater accuracy and consistency and aiding providers with opportunities to act earlier.

These insights are further amplified by the adoption of Curodont™ from vVardis, a noninvasive treatment powered by a proprietary formulation that diffuses through early lesions and works with naturally occurring calcium and phosphate in saliva to enable targeted enamel remineralization. Instead of "watchful waiting," Curodont™ allows supported doctors to take proactive steps to preserve the natural tooth structure and avoid more invasive procedures.

"The AI technology tools our supported clinicians are using every day enhance patient communication, turning complex diagnostics into clear visuals and supporting more precise diagnoses," said Dr. Tim Quirt, MBA, SVP, Clinical Operations. "When combined with Curodont™, these innovations are reshaping the standard of care and shifting dentistry from a model of restoration to one of true preservation. Heartland Dental supported doctors and hygienists are leading this shift, redefining what is possible in preventive care."

In the first half of 2025, Heartland Dental's supported offices helped a record-number of patients begin their journey to a healthy, more confident smile with Invisalign treatment. Supported doctors and their teams demonstrated record levels of engagement with Invisalign treatment, driven by increased training, seamless operational support, patient financing enhancements, and strategic, multi-modal marketing campaigns.

The company is continuing to invest in the patient financing offerings available for supported practices, tackling one of the biggest barriers to patients in accessing the care they need, desire, and deserve. Heartland Dental supported offices will gain access to additional financing options for General Dentistry in Q3, helping patients gain access to essential dental care through financing.

Elevating Excellence through Education
As technology and AI propel the company to new heights, Heartland Dental University (HDU) provides supported doctors with growth areas to help ensure that they are equipped to meet opportunities head-on. Through hands-on education, mentorship, and learning pathways rooted in everyday dentistry, HDU empowers supported doctors, hygienists, and team members with tools to grow clinically, lead confidently, and thrive in their personal development.

In the past year, HDU has facilitated over 100,000 in-person and virtual course completions, along with over 460,000 self-paced web-based completions. These learning experiences resulted in almost 400,000 continuing education credits earned. With an improved Net Promoter Score of 67.47% (up from 65.49% the previous year) and a participant performance improvement of 36.89% (up from 35.7% the previous year), HDU continues to deliver measurable impact across key development areas.

Heartland Dental remains deeply committed to helping to develop the next generation of dental professionals, and HDU continues to expand its offerings with new programs to meet evolving needs. HDU remains a powerful reflection of Heartland Dental's ongoing investment in its people and the future of dentistry.

In April 2025, Heartland Dental and Concorde Career Colleges, the healthcare division of Universal Technical Institute, broke ground on a first-of-its-kind co-branded campus in Fort Myers, Florida. This innovative partnership is designed to help meet the growing demand for dental hygienists and dental assistants in high-growth areas like Southwest Florida. The new Concorde–Fort Myers campus will train up to 190 students annually, offering education through Concorde's accredited curriculum, expert faculty, and dedicated student support services.

Recognition for Workplace Excellence
Heartland Dental was once again honored by Newsweek as one of America's Greatest Workplaces in Healthcare, reflecting its commitment to creating supportive workplace where every clinician and team member from the front office to the operatory has the opportunity to grow, thrive, and make an impact. Our Core Values drive the actions we take every day, and we are proud to support initiatives that underscore our commitment to promoting a culture with balance, professional development, and team success.

The Company was also awarded a 2025 Effie Award in the "Data Driven/Media" category, recognizing marketing campaigns that deliver measurable business impact. In partnership with Fusion92 and Buyer Advertising, the company launched a comprehensive, data-driven strategy that included digital, SEM, paid social, direct email marketing, and recruiter enablement. This innovative strategy was driven by the urgent need to address nationwide dental staffing shortages following the COVID-19 pandemic, along with planned openings of new Heartland Dental supported offices.

Looking Ahead
With a strong foundation in place, Heartland Dental is well-positioned to finish 2025 with continued momentum helping supported doctors and their teams expand access to care, embrace innovation and elevate patient experiences.

For more information on Heartland Dental's support services, visit heartland.com/the-doctor-difference.

About Heartland Dental
Heartland Dental is the nation's largest dental support organization, providing non-clinical administrative support services. What started from the entrepreneurial spirit of Rick Workman, DMD, with his single dental practice, has evolved into affiliating with over 3,000 doctors in over 1,800 locations across 39 states and the District of Columbia. The company is majority owned by KKR, a leading global investment firm. For additional information, please visit heartland.com. 

Media Contact
Jessica Thompson, Vice President of Communications
[email protected]

SOURCE Heartland Dental