Western Dental Names John C. Duncan Senior Vice President of Government Relations

ORANGE, Calif., May 12, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Western Dental, one of the nation's leaders in accessible, affordable oral healthcare, today announced the appointment of John C. Duncan as Senior Vice President of Government Relations.

Duncan, who will join Western Dental May 16, has had a distinguished 30-year career in government service at the state and federal level, as well as in the private sector. He has served three California governors.

Duncan joins Western Dental after serving as Vice President of Government Affairs at U.S. HealthWorks, one of the largest operators of occupational healthcare and urgent care medical centers in the nation.

Western Dental is the leading provider of services to the Denti-Cal program, part of the Medi-Cal public insurance program that provides health care benefits for more than 13 million low-income individuals and families in California. Western Dental dentists provided care to over half a million Denti-Cal beneficiaries in 2015.  Western Dental is   committed to continuing to partner with the State to help improve the program. 

"As Western Dental continues to grow, it is critical that we foster strong partnerships with policymakers and agency leaders in areas that we are passionate about, like providing services to Denti-Cal patients," said Daniel D. Crowley, Chairman of Western Dental and its affiliate, Brident Dental & Orthodontics. "John has tremendous depth of experience in government and health-related issues and will be a great asset to our organization." 

Duncan will work with Jeffrey Miller, Senior Vice President and General Counsel, in expanding Western Dental's engagement with California administration, policymakers and key stakeholders to find solutions to challenges across the oral healthcare spectrum.

Before his work at U.S. HealthWorks, Duncan twice held the position of Director of the California Department of Industrial Relations (DIR), the state's labor agency, where he oversaw 16 divisions, boards, and commissions, including the Labor Commissioner's Office, Cal/OSHA and the Division of Worker's Compensation. He also served as a Board Member to the California State Insurance Fund and California Self Insurers Security Fund. Duncan also was appointed as Chairman of the California Public Employment Relations Board and Chairman of the California Employment Training panel.

Duncan earned a Master's of Public Administration from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University and a Bachelor's degree in history from the University of California, Berkeley.

To learn more about Western Dental, visit www.westerndental.com or call 888-844-4478.

ABOUT WESTERN DENTAL
Western Dental (with its affiliate, Brident Dental & Orthodontics) is one of the nation's largest dental providers and is the leader in accessible, affordable oral health care, serving over two million patients visits annually in more than 200 affiliated clinics throughout California, Arizona, Nevada, and Texas. Western Dental is a nationwide leader in orthodontic services and last year expanded its network of orthodontists, oral surgeons, pedodontists, periodontists and endodontists, to better service patient needs all within the office. All of Western Dental's services are backed by a unique quality assurance system that electronically monitors all patient visits, treatments, dental staff and clinical performance to enable high-quality care. For more information please visit www.westerndental.com.

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SOURCE Western Dental