SAN FRANCISCO–(HISPANIC PR WIRE – BUSINESS WIRE)–Oct. 6, 2003–In an effort to provide important dental health information to more Californians, the state’s largest dental plan today unveiled a Spanish version of the enrollee portal on its popular web site.
Delta Dental of California’s new web pages offer enrollees and customers complete access in Spanish to corporate news, dental health and benefits information and links to web services. In coming weeks, the company plans to translate the Delta virtual tour, its “SmileKids” dental health section for children and teachers, customer service forms, benefits and eligibility information and Delta’s online dentist directory search function.
“Providing clear dental health information to enrollees as well as to the general public is an important public service, and we recognize that we can reach many more people by offering web services in Spanish as well as in English,” said Gary D. Radine, president and CEO. “Especially in California, where English is a second language for so many of our current and prospective customers, we want to improve access to web pages so they can be well-informed consumers of dental services.”
The Spanish-language version of the corporate web site is part of an ongoing initiative begun by Delta years ago to increase access to dental health information and empower enrollees to make educated dental benefit decisions. As part of this initiative, the company offers printed materials — such as enrollee brochures and dental health tips — written in Spanish, the second most commonly spoken language in California. Delta employs many bilingual staff members, including Spanish-speaking customer service representatives and support staff who provide support for on-site customer educational forums such as open enrollment meetings. This past year, the company produced a Spanish video to help new enrollees better understand how their dental plan works, and it also initiated a Spanish-language radio advertising campaign.
The U.S. Census Bureau estimates that as of the year 2000, nearly 26 percent of Californians, or nearly 9 million people, spoke Spanish in the home – a number expected to increase as the state’s Latino population grows.
Delta Dental of California is the state’s largest dental plan with more than 16 million enrollees. Its dental HMO affiliate, PMI Dental Health Plan, is one of the largest dental HMOs in the state with more than 1.2 million enrollees. Both are part of the enterprise formed with Delta Dental of Pennsylvania and affiliates, and which collectively covers nearly 20 million people in 16 states and the District of Columbia. All are also part of the Delta Dental Plans Association, whose member Delta plans cover more than 43 million people nationwide.
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CONTACT:
Delta Dental of California
Elizabeth Risberg, 415-972-8423
