Topeka ? A Pittsburg dentist realizes he’s in the minority when he advocates for a new level of dental care to fill huge service gaps across Kansas.

But Daniel Minnis says the lack of dental services in rural areas of the state can’t be ignored, and there just aren’t enough dentists to go around.

Minnis supports introducing registered dental practitioners to perform routine procedures under the guidance of a dentist. But many of his colleagues don’t think that’s the way to resolve the shortage in Kansas.

The Topeka Capital-Journal reports that Kansas is one of five states receiving funding from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation to raise awareness of oral health challenges and lobby for dental therapists.

Fifteen rural Kansas counties don’t have a dentist.