Delta Dental’s Corporate Giving Tops $1.4 Million in 2006
Support benefits communities in Michigan, Ohio and Indiana

OKEMOS, Mich., (March 27, 2007) — Programs that improved oral health or advanced dental science, along with community-based non-profits all benefited from grants made through the corporate philanthropic programs of Delta Dental of Michigan, Ohio and Indiana in 2006.

The dental benefits provider awarded a total of $1,459,000 through the corporation’s Delta Dental Foundation and Community Relations Program. In addition, hundreds of Delta Dental employees donated time and financial support to community-based charities.

“Good corporate citizenship is a core value of our company and is integral to the way we conduct business,” said Dr. Thomas J. Fleszar, president and chief executive officer of Delta Dental. “Through charitable giving and employee volunteerism, we hope to improve people’s lives and influence lasting changes in the communities where we live and work.”

Fleszar said that in addition to the monetary grants, the corporation launched a Community Service Program for salaried employees that offers eight hours annually of paid time off for participation in community service activities.

Delta Dental Foundation 2006 grant making highlights

In 2006, the Foundation awarded $30,000 to Hemophilia of Indiana, Inc. to help them develop educational materials about hemophilia and oral care, and to conduct research to track oral health outcomes in patients with the disease.

A $20,000 Thomas P. Moore II Memorial Grant was made to the Joan Bisesi Fund for Head and Neck Oncology Research at the James Cancer Hospital Foundation in Ohio, strengthening Delta Dental’s commitment to reducing the incidence and death rate of oral cancer in the U.S. Mr. Moore was a longtime member of the Board of Directors for both Delta Dental of Michigan and Delta Dental of Ohio, and the Delta Dental Foundation. He developed oral cancer and died in 2005.

Last year was also the inaugural year for the Foundation’s Community Mini-Grant Program, which awarded nearly $50,000 in small grants to community-based health organizations whose programs improve the oral health of underserved residents.

In addition, the Foundation continued its annual support of the Capuchin Dental Program at the Jefferson House in Detroit with a grant of nearly $30,000. The program helps to improve the oral health of recovering alcoholics and drug users. The Foundation has been providing grants to Capuchin since 1990.

Community Relations 2006 charitable giving highlights

As part of the corporation’s efforts to heighten awareness of the link between oral and general health, the Community Relations Program provided significant support to the American Heart Association and the American Diabetes Association.

The program, in concert with support from hundreds of Delta Dental employees, donated $210,000 to American Heart Association affiliates in Southfield, Mich.; Cleveland and Columbus, Ohio; and, Indianapolis, Ind.

Delta Dental donated $100,000 to the American Diabetes Association’s Corporate Health Ambassador initiative to help companies in Michigan take action to educate and motivate their employees to develop and sustain healthier lifestyles in an effort to avoid developing diabetes.

The Community Relations Program also supported the United Way, United Negro College Fund, Prevent Blindness Ohio and March of Dimes.

Delta Dental of Michigan, Ohio and Indiana, along with Delta Dental of Tennessee, are affiliated members of Renaissance Health Service Corporation, a family of companies that combined is one of the largest dental plan administrators in the nation. In 2006, the enterprise paid more than $1.7 billion for dental care for more than 6.2 million enrollees. Offices are located in Okemos, Farmington Hills, and Grand Rapids, Michigan; Columbus and Cleveland, Ohio; Indianapolis, Indiana; and Nashville, Knoxville, and Memphis, Tennessee.

For more information about Delta Dental of Michigan, Ohio and Indiana, visit www.deltadentalmi.com (Michigan), www.deltadentaloh.com (Ohio) and www.deltadentalin.com (Indiana).