{"status":"ok","say":"Heartland Dental is PE-backed. Backers: KKR; Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan. Dental practices in the group are affiliated: the company usually manages them through a management services organization, and a dentist remains each practice's legal owner.","group":{"id":"dental:heartland-dental","industry":"dental","name":"Heartland Dental","label":"pe_backed","label_text":"PE-backed","consumer_wording":"PE-backed (KKR; Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan)","backers":"KKR; Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan (sizeable minority)","backers_short":"KKR; Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan","since":"2018","parent":null,"parent_id":"","children":[],"website":"https://heartland.com","confidence":"high","pe_stake":"majority","pe_stake_text":"PE investors hold a majority stake in the group.","practice_model":"buyout","practice_model_text":"Buyout: the group buys the practice outright.","url":"https://peornot.org/groups/dental/heartland-dental/","sources":[{"url":"https://www.webull.com/news/15786237349045248","headline":"Heartland Dental Reaches 2,000 Supported Dental Offices, Expanding Its Doctor-Led Culture and Support Model Nationwide","site":"Webull","date":"2026-10-21"},{"url":"https://heartland.com/doctor-led-or-dso","headline":"Sell Your Dental Practice | A Proven DSO Growth Support Partner","site":"Heartland Dental","date":""}],"known_locations":{"FL":605,"TX":221,"IL":153,"NC":119,"VA":99,"TN":95,"WI":95,"MN":93,"MO":89,"SC":89,"AZ":87,"GA":87,"IN":79,"OK":62,"PA":58,"OH":57,"MD":55,"CO":53,"NY":53,"WA":50,"MI":45,"KY":38,"NV":24,"AL":23,"LA":17,"MS":16,"AR":15,"IA":15,"OR":15,"NE":13,"CT":9,"ID":9,"MA":9,"NM":8,"KS":6,"NH":6,"UT":4,"CA":1,"DC":1,"ME":1,"VT":1},"known_locations_total":2575},"other_matches":[],"coverage":{"industry":"dental","industry_name":"dental","state":null,"zip":null,"level":"national_npi","metro":null,"note":"Every US dental practice in the federal NPI registry, checked against the 185 dental groups we track (their location lists, NPI names and signers). Groups that keep each practice's local name can be missed, so \"no known PE ties\" means none found, not none exist.","groups_tracked":185,"data_as_of":"2026-10-31"},"wording_rules":["Say \"PE-backed\" or \"affiliated with a PE-backed group\" and name the firm. Never say a dental or eye care practice is \"owned by\" a PE firm: the PE-backed company usually manages it, and a dentist or doctor remains the legal owner.","Say \"no known PE ties\", never \"independent\": only practices that certify their ownership (Verified Not PE) are confirmed independent. It means we found no ties, not that none exist.","State ownership as facts with sources: cite the source headline and link, and the data date.","Never say or imply a practice is worse (care, prices, honesty) because of who owns or backs it.","label \"unconfirmed\" means a thin or old record: say \"Not confirmed\" and give the source; don't name the group as the owner.","Vision Source members and Pearle Vision franchise stores are independently owned: never label them by the network.","Use the \"say\" text as written or stay close to it. If the user says it's wrong, give the correction link."],"data_as_of":"2026-10-31","attribution":"PE or Not? (peornot.org), data as of 2026-10-31. Cite the sources listed.","links":{"methodology":"https://peornot.org/labels/","corrections":"https://peornot.org/corrections/","corrections_email":"corrections@peornot.org","developers":"https://peornot.org/developers/"}}