Delta Dental Names John Yamamoto, DDS, MPH, as Dental Director of Professional Services.

SAN FRANCISCO -- Delta Dental of California, Delta Dental of Pennsylvania and their affiliates today named John Yamamoto, DDS, MPH, as the new dental director of Professional Services.

Dr. Yamamoto comes to Delta Dental after a six-year affiliation with the UCLA School of Dentistry, where he worked as both an adjunct assistant professor and as the director of the Venice Dental Clinic. In his new position, he will oversee quality assessment, claims review and quality-related dental consultants, as well as ensure compliance with state regulatory requirements and advise on dental policy issues in Delta Dental's 15-state area plus the District of Columbia. He also will lead the company's research area.

While at UCLA, Dr. Yamamoto focused much of his time on providing and teaching community-oriented dental care, serving Southern California's lower-income families and developing programs to increase access to the indigent population. He taught courses in regulation, cultural competency, quality assurance, and health policy to dental students. For five years, Dr. Yamamoto served as a dental consultant to the California Department of Managed Health Care. He holds a doctor of dental surgery degree from UCSF, a master's degree in public health from UCLA, and a bachelor's degree in biology from UC Irvine. Dr. Yamamoto also holds a dental public health residency certificate from UCLA and UCSF.

"We are fortunate to have Dr. Yamamoto join our organization," said Marilynn Belek, DMD, executive vice president and chief dental officer for Delta Dental, "His breadth of knowledge, leading-edge research and many years of hands-on experience mesh perfectly with everything Delta Dental represents. A large part of our company's mission is providing quality dental care to the underserved, and his expertise in this area will benefit us tremendously."

Delta Dental of California, Pennsylvania and its affiliated companies within the holding company system, along with Delta Dental of New York, are all part of the Delta Dental Plans Association (DDPA), based in Oak Brook, Ill. DDPA consists of 39 Delta Dental member companies licensed in all 50 states. The association collectively covers about 50 million of the 170 million people nationwide with private dental insurance, making it by far the largest national system of dental plans.