A $5 million OSF HealthCare project in Peoria will add dedicated capacity for pediatric and specialty dental procedures performed under sedation. The expansion is intended to reduce waits that have reached nine months or longer to about a week, according to 1470 & 100.3 WMBD.
U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin was in Peoria on Tuesday to announce $2 million in federal funding for the project, according to 1470 & 100.3 WMBD. Senate Appropriations Committee documentation released by Durbin's office in February 2026 specifies that the earmark will fund four dedicated operatories at OSF HealthCare in Peoria for pediatric and specialty dental services performed under sedation, according to a press release from Sen. Durbin's office.
The center is planned for the site of OSF's existing small dental clinic in the Forest Park building, according to 1470 & 100.3 WMBD. OSF is contributing $3 million to the $5 million project. OSF Saint Francis Medical Center President Mike Wells said the expansion is intended to let patients receive specialized dental procedures in Peoria rather than travel elsewhere.
A Wait That Once Stretched Nine Months
Before this project, Central Illinois had no outpatient dental sedation clinic, forcing pediatric and low-income patients who needed intensive dental surgery under sedation to travel to Chicago or St. Louis, according to Senate project filings cited by Chronicle Media. Patients requiring sedation currently wait nine months or longer for an appointment, per WMBD's reporting. OSF's Director of Community Outreach, Amanda Sutphen, said the new facility is expected to open in approximately 18 months, as noted by 1470 & 100.3 WMBD, and that once it does, patients requiring sedation will wait roughly one week.
What the State Shortage Designation Shows
The Illinois Department of Public Health says 75 of the state's 102 counties are considered Dental Health Professional Shortage Areas. The statewide figure confirms that dental-care shortages extend well beyond Peoria, but the state information cited here does not identify whether Peoria County is among those designated counties or specify which populations qualify under the designation.
The expansion is also expected to increase access to completely free dental care in Peoria, according to the station's report, although no specific increase in patients is given. The need comes amid broader dental-access gaps in Illinois: an Illinois Department of Public Health report found that 22% of third-graders statewide suffer from untreated tooth decay, while roughly 2.5 million adults have untreated dental disease, according to the Illinois Policy Institute.
A Statewide Shortage Behind the Long Waits
The shortage isn't unique to Peoria. According to the Illinois Department of Public Health, 75 of Illinois' 102 counties are considered Dental Health Professional Shortage Areas. Medicaid coverage is part of the broader dental-access challenge in Illinois.
State lawmakers have also considered ways to address the crunch. House Bill 3019 would create temporary dental hygiene licenses allowing dental students to practice under supervision, an effort aimed at expanding clinical capacity in safety-net settings, the Illinois Policy Institute reported.
A Historic Building With a New Purpose
The Forest Park building where the new center will rise has served specialized medical needs on the OSF campus for decades. It originally opened in 1950 as a convalescent home for young polio victims, funded by the Forest Park Foundation, according to Peoria Magazine. The same site is part of the OSF campus, according to OSF HealthCare.
Part of a Broader Push Downstate
Peoria's earmark wasn't the only dental investment in the federal funding package. Durbin also secured $1.1 million for Southern Illinois University's Dental School clinic in Edwardsville to expand pediatric and specialty dental care for Medicaid-covered and uninsured patients, Chronicle Media reported. The package included appropriations for Illinois health care facilities, including the Peoria project. The Peoria funding was included among the package's appropriations for Illinois health care facilities.
