California has 565 dental professional shortage areas, the most of any state, according to new data from the Health Resources and Services Administration.
The HRSA recently published a report on health professional shortage areas in the U.S. for the first quarter of 2026. The report includes data on shortages for primary care, mental healthcare and dental care.
Here is the latest data on dental shortages, including the total number of HRSA-designated shortage areas, the percent of needs met and the number of practitioners needed to fill care gaps:
| State | Total designations | Percent of needs met | Practitioners needed |
| Alabama | 92 | 24.3% | 139 |
| Alaska | 333 | 33.8% | 60 |
| Arizona | 229 | 34.7% | 381 |
| Arkansas | 138 | 33.4% | 107 |
| California | 565 | 36% | 475 |
| Colorado | 116 | 57.8% | 92 |
| Connecticut | 42 | 32.8% | 98 |
| Delaware | 12 | 4.4% | 104 |
| Florida | 283 | 18.7% | 1,271 |
| Georgia | 186 | 17.8% | 402 |
| Hawaii | 33 | 36.5% | 39 |
| Idaho | 98 | 37.5% | 70 |
| Illinois | 248 | 28.3% | 383 |
| Indiana | 133 | 27.8% | 207 |
| Iowa | 148 | 27.3% | 107 |
| Kansas | 133 | 29.5% | 49 |
| Kentucky | 226 | 10.4% | 219 |
| Louisiana | 176 | 45.8% | 260 |
| Maine | 84 | 27.9% | 42 |
| Maryland | 42 | 43% | 229 |
| Massachusetts | 56 | 62.1% | 20 |
| Michigan | 268 | 30.1% | 278 |
| Minnesota | 198 | 43.8% | 133 |
| Mississippi | 151 | 40.1% | 212 |
| Missouri | 329 | 20.9% | 324 |
| Montana | 115 | 45.9% | 32 |
| Nebraska | 114 | 49.7% | 13 |
| Nevada | 66 | 26.2% | 156 |
| New Hampshire | 21 | 21.6% | 7 |
| New Jersey | 39 | 50.8% | 32 |
| New Mexico | 104 | 21.4% | 165 |
| New York | 163 | 16.2% | 588 |
| North Carolina | 209 | 23% | 657 |
| North Dakota | 70 | 40.4% | 14 |
| Ohio | 184 | 39.6% | 411 |
| Oklahoma | 187 | 41.6% | 175 |
| Oregon | 144 | 40.8% | 162 |
| Pennsylvania | 153 | 40% | 268 |
| Rhode Island | 15 | 38% | 33 |
| South Carolina | 96 | 47.9% | 227 |
| South Dakota | 100 | 26.7% | 47 |
| Tennessee | 162 | 30.8% | 396 |
| Texas | 275 | 29.9% | 362 |
| Utah | 60 | 49.6% | 23 |
| Vermont | 13 | 77.6% | 0 |
| Virginia | 178 | 53% | 296 |
| Washington | 204 | 58% | 219 |
| Washington, D.C. | 10 | 2.9% | 22 |
| West Virginia | 123 | 22.6% | 140 |
| Wisconsin | 165 | 29.3% | 205 |
| Wyoming | 30 | 31.5% | 11 |
