April 2013
The Lingual Groove
One of the greatest aspects of attend-
ing ASDA Annual Session is that,
through the breakout sessions, you
can tailor your experience to your
personal interests and goals. For me
this meant attending the sessions that
dealt with legislative issues and how
to better advocate for them.
The first breakout session I attended
was titled “Advocacy for the Next
generation of Dentists.” The goal of
this meeting was to explain the im-
portance of the American Dental Po-
litical Action Committee (ADPAC).
Dr. Gordon Isbell, a Board Member
of ADPAC, spoke to the group about
the power of organized dentistry and
the impact that dentistry, as a collec-
tive unit, can make in benefiting our
profession. Dr. Isbell keyed in on the
recent impacts ADPAC has made in
Washington, DC. Through lobbying
efforts and establishing strong rela-
tionships with the lawmakers in
Washington, ADPAC has successful-
ly blocked a number of detriments to
dentistry that fell under the Afforda-
ble Care Act. This included blocking
Mid-Level Providers, as well as
blocking the 2.3% tax on fillings,
crowns and implants. Other issues
that ADPAC is currently fighting for
include student debt, student loan
repayment, insurance reimburse-
ments, and tax issues affecting small
businesses. Dr. Isbell stressed how
important being a member of AD-
PAC is, even as a dental student. By
joining ADPAC as a student, you get
involved and invested early in your
career, which may pay dividends
down the road.
The next meeting I attended focused
on building a relationship with your
state dental association. Organized
dentistry is an amazing
entity to be involved with
on any level, strength in
numbers is a powerful
thing. By establishing a relationship
with ones’ state dental association as
a student, you are able to gain insight
from more experienced dentists on
issues spanning from practice man-
agement to what political actions are
affecting our profession. In turn, by
being involved as a student member
of state dental associations, we can
provide our perspective as students.
Continued on the next page
Inside this issue:
ASDA Annual Ses-
sion continued
2
A Busy Day… Capitol 2
ADPAC 3
Legislation Affecting
Dentistry
5
Making a Difference
with Dental Degree
5
Corporate Dentistry 6
GKAS 7
MLPs, State Dental Associations and
Lobbying: ASDAs Annual Session
Page 2
The Lingual Groove
MLPs, State Dental Associations and Lobbying: ASDAs Annual
Session continued
“A Busy Day at the Capitol”
“It’s a busy day at the capitol…”
Representative Heather Carter, the
Chair of the Committee on Health
begins during a committee hearing in
the Arizona House of Representa-
tives. She continues to introduce us
dental students and the dentists who
represent the Arizona Dental Associ-
ation supporting several oral health
initiatives on Dental Lobby Day
which took place February 13th,
2013.
It was thrilling to see the process, if
only for a day. It sparked an even
greater interest in me for dental advo-
cacy. It was inspiring to see local
dentists persuasively lobby for Medi-
caid expansion for Arizonans and the
bill, HB 2513, which would enable
the Board of Dental Examiners to
take disciplinary action against busi-
ness entities (ie. dental corporations)
that interfere with a dentist’s clinical
judgment. Arizona is one of the few
states in the nation that permit non-
licensee ownership of dental practic-
es.
In fact during our visit, HB 2513
was scheduled for a hearing before
the House Health Committee. Dr.
Allison House, treasurer of the Ari-
zona Dental Association (AzDA) and
Kevin Earle, executive director of the
AzDA, testified sharing their stories
and explaining the dental communi-
ty’s perspective as to why this bill
should pass. This bill would give the
Board of Dental Examiners the abil-
ity to charge a registered business
entity with “unethical conduct,” and
thus permit disciplinary action to be
taken.
Continued on next page
The session provided such ideas as
inviting the state dental associations
to campus to give presentations, and
also attempting to connect out of
state students with their home state
dental association (especially if that
state does not have a dental school).
The session concluded by explaining
what an ideal situation of involve-
ment would be with a state dental
association as a dental student: hav-
ing a voting member on each com-
mittee with alternations, voting
members on house of delegates floor
and a student member on the board
of trustees. I look forward to help-
ing our chapter at ASDOH reach
this ideal situation.
Finally, I attended a breakout ses-
sion on one of the hottest topics in
dentistry today: Mid-Level Provid-
ers. From everything I had been ex-
posed to prior on this issue, this was
by far the most complete and well
put together presentation on Mid-
Level Providers I have seen. It was
well orchestrated, showed all the
different sides of the issue, provided
the audience with significant data
and facilitated a discussion that
spilled into the hallway after the ses-
sion had concluded. The presenta-
tion examined the different models
of Mid-Level Providers: Alaska’s
Dental Health Aid Therapists, Min-
nesota’s Dental Therapists, New
Zealand’s Dental Therapists and
Community Dental Health Coordi-
nators. The point of the session was
to highlight the American Dental
Associations stance on Mid-Level
Providers. The ADA feels that
breaking down the barriers for all
Americans is the main issue at hand.
Through prevention, literacy, educa-
tion and instilling values in oral
health is how this is accomplished,
not by creating a new provider.
By attending the various sessions
that interested me most I received a
sense of empowerment and enthusi-
asm for how to make our chapter at
ASDOH better. Attending Annual
Session provided me with education,
ideas, energy, and new networking
outlets. I am confident, that upon
utilization of what was gained from
Annual Session, our
chapter can and will
become greater than it
already is!
~ Jordan Janis ASDOH
2016’
Page 3
The Lingual Groove
“A Busy Day at the Capitol” continued
It would help ensure a dentist
can remain autonomous in one’s de-
cision making. It is a concern that
some dental corporations may push
treatment that is unnecessary to gain
a profit. HB 2513 also eliminates the
age restriction in the Dental Practice
Act for a dentist to obtain a retired
license, which had been arbitrarily
set at 65 years of age. Let’s examine
the first part of this bill in light of the
hearing.
While I was not in person during the
entirety of the hearing, I found the
recording online and am able to re-
port on the proceedings of the hear-
ing by using this resource on the
State Legislature’s website at
www.azleg.gov. First, Mr. Earle pro-
vided some background information
about the necessity of the bill. Then,
Dr. House shared her personal expe-
riences from previous work in a cor-
porate office.
A year out of dental school, Dr.
House worked as an employee den-
tist for a corporate entity. One day
she came to work and found her usu-
al assistant assigned to do a full day
of cleanings, although the assistant
was not licensed or qualified to do
cleanings. Another day, Dr. House
was met by a treatment plan of tooth
extractions and a denture delivery.
The chart was very unclear, so she
investigated the case. She found that
not only did an assistant make the
denture, but the patient was never
even seen by any of the other den-
tists working in the office. Dr.
House refused to do the work and
was fired later that week. She asks
that the business entities “be held to
the same standard as dentists” by the
Board of Dental Examiners.
In a unanimous vote, with “do pass”
recommendation the bill was moved
out of the house Health Committee
to continue on in the legislative pro-
cess. To become a law this bill must
next pass through the majority and
minority caucuses, then the House
floor, next to the Senate Health
Committee, get passed by the full the
Senate, and finally to the Governor.
The Governor can then sign the bill,
making it law. In Arizona, new laws
take effect 90 days after the Legisla-
ture adjourns for the session.
Getting engaged in legislative advo-
cacy on behalf of organized dentistry
is a great way to have a greater im-
pact on our profession and our com-
munities. It empowers us to have
influence beyond the patients we see
on a day to day basis. It enables us to
help as many people as we can. We
must find our voice and engage in
pertinent issues to help mold the fu-
ture of our profession. We need to
prevent others from undermining our
autonomy as oral health care provid-
ers and support laws that improve
the health of our patients. I encour-
age you to come
out for next year’s
Dental Lobby
Day! It was time
very well spent.
~ Jessi Giles
ASDOH 2016’
The American Dental Political Action Committee: Why Schools Need
to do a Better Job Making Students Aware of Their Importance
Wow, another day of emails upon
emails sent to us by our school or
people that are affiliated with our
school. Sound familiar? Deep down
I know that each and every single
one of these emails is important to
me in some way or another, but
alas, I do not have the time to read
and respond to them all. Does that
also sound familiar? I feel especial-
ly helpless reading emails asking
for a sincere donation to whatever
causes a group or individual may be
raising money for. Unfortunately,
with the heavy burden of student
loans, we don’t have much money
to donate. In response, we prioritize
to whom we give our money to each
year. This year, and every year af-
ter, dental schools and students
across the country need to do a bet-
ter job of making sure that the
American Dental Political Action
Committee (ADPAC) is at the top
of everyone’s list.
Continued on next page
Page 4
Volume 1, Issue 1
The American Dental Political Action Committee: Why Schools Need to
do a Better Job Making Students Aware of Their Importance continued
I was honored to be a first time at-
tendee to the 2013 Annual Session
hosted by the American Student Den-
tal Association in Atlanta, Georgia.
Everywhere I looked, the best student
leaders in the country surrounded me.
One of the opening presentations that
we were very fortunate to see was
one on ADPAC. ADPAC is single-
handedly the most important political
action committee in the field of den-
tistry. It’s main goal is to preserve
the integrity of our discipline as well
as to educate people about the link
between oral care and overall health.
This is accomplished by making sure
that we lobby our congress to pass
bills that will help our profession and
communities as a whole, and oppose
bills that will not.
As someone who considers himself
very politically charged, I was almost
embarrassed that I had not taken an
interest in ADPAC earlier. Among so
much more, ADPAC has advocated
and continues to advocate for:
Front line discussions on mid-
level providers. Midlevel
providers may put pa-
tients and the dental pro-
fession as a whole at seri-
ous risk!
Keeping our water fluori-
dated
Oral health assessments for
school children
Access to oral care for un-
derserved populations
Oral health Research
A stop on certain taxes and
fees on dental equipment
I had heard the name AD-
PAC maybe once or twice,
and probably received a few emails
about the group’s fundraising events
or learning seminars. Unfortunately,
like many students, taking the time to
learn about and eventually making a
donation to ADPAC was not high on
my priority list. This type of apathy
towards such a crucial organization
that is fighting for our futures as den-
tists is simply unacceptable.
Asking every dental school to make a
mandatory $5 contribution per stu-
dent won’t work because this is a po-
litical action committee…and as we
all know, anything that deals with
politics is simply a gray area. Even
mandatory ASDOH membership is-
n’t at every dental school (something
that immediately needs to be
changed!). To offer an analogy, peo-
ple don’t get to opt out of paying for
services such as having police offic-
ers and firefighters if they are quali-
fied to pay for it. These services in
turn help keep communities safe in
case if something goes wrong. AD-
PAC also offers a service that helps
keep its members, patients, and the
field of oral health safe. Their actions
are for the wellbeing of all its stu-
dents, whether they know it or not.
This is why I feel that we must do
more at our schools to educate our
classmates and incoming students on
its importance. By increasing aware-
ness about ADPAC we can not only
help raise more money, but we can
also inspire individuals in our field to
become more in touch with how poli-
tics directly affects the field of den-
tistry. I would ask that Deans of den-
tal schools across the country add a
brief but informative presentation to
their incoming student orientations
(when student attention is probably at
its highest) explaining ADPAC’s sig-
nificance. Current student dentists
and members of ADPAC can take
part in a student led presentation at
the beginning of every year while
students haven’t yet used up money
on things they don’t really need.
Along with giving students a website
or shooting them an email reminding
them to donate, we should hand out
donation cards/slips which can be
collected in a box kept in front of the
room. These are only a few ideas!
I’m aware that the membership in
ADPAC varies at different schools
just the same as it does in ASDA.
However, just like with ASDA mem-
bership, we should find creative new
ways to educate students on the im-
portance of ADPAC and how their
involvement can help make it an
even stronger organ-
ization.
~Amol Amin
ASDOH 2016’
Page 5
The Lingual Groove
Legislation Affecting Dentistry Medicaid Expansion for Low-Income Adults
Reinstatement of Adult Emergency Dental Benefit
Abolish Use Tax on Clear Aligner products
Business Entities: Unethical Conduct
Reinstatement of Adult ER Benefits Reinstatement will put over $20 million
back into dentists’ offices and com-
munity clinics where patients can get proper
care instead of going to hospital emergency
rooms.
Business Entities: Unethical Conduct
Give Arizona State Board of Dental Examin-
ers (BODEX) the authority to charge a busi-
ness entity for interfering in the professional
judgment of licensed dentists. This addresses
How Can YOU Make a Difference With That Dental Degree?
~ Elizabeth
Rivers
ASDOH
2015’
The U.S. Public Health Service is
for those who want to gain life ex-
perience living in different places
while working as a dentist in under-
served communities. Entering the
service offers a massive amount of
career options that are dynamic and
fulfilling. The mission of U.S. PHS
is simple, but profound – to protect,
promote and advance the health of
the nation. This organization em-
phasizes an overall approach to
health care. This philosophy surely
resonates with ASDOH students.
The U.S. PHS is made of over 6,500
officers of different health profes-
sions with a total of 300 dentists in
commission corps and about 1000
dentists in civil service. There are
small (1 dentist) or large clinics
(~40 dentists!) available to work in.
Other benefits of the U.S. PHS in-
clude: flexibility in where you live,
loan repayment options (when
working with IHS $24,000 a year),
loads of experience in the clinics, 30
days paid vacation + 10 federal holi-
day vacations, housing compensa-
tion, paid maternity leave, free
health & dental care, malpractice
coverage, retirement (after 20 years’
service, retire at 50% of base pay
and after 30 years’ service, retire at
75% of base pay), savings plans,
humanitarian mission trips, and
more!
Continued on next page
Page 6
The Lingual Groove
How Can YOU Make a Difference With
That Dental Degree? continued
Another exciting aspect of joining
the U.S. PHS is to work on many
nation-wide projects to improve oral
health such as surveillance of caries,
sealants, tooth retention, implement-
ing Health People 2020 and the Oral
Health Initiative 2010 and improv-
ing health literacy. Your impact
with this organization would be far
reaching, needless to say. With one
license, you can work at any duty
station in the U.S. (except if you are
a tribal hire, in which case you must
be licensed in that state). How do
you get your assignment? You
CHOOSE. You FIND a job
opening and apply there. The
availabilities are posted
online. And how early should
you apply? One year in ad-
vance. It’s competitive, keep
that in mind! For more infor-
mation, visit usphs.gov. Please
note the information in this article
was gathered from the ASDA Annu-
al Session workshop presented by
William Bailey, Chief Dental Of-
ficer of the U.S. Public Health Ser-
vice.
~ Jessi Giles ASDOH ‘2016
“What’s the profession doing to
work on the access to care is-
sue?” asked Dr. Greg Loeben to a
classroom full of ASDOH students
during the last monthly Student Pro-
fessionalism and Ethics Committee
(SPEC) meeting. 50% of our na-
tion’s kids depend on Medicaid. Is
corporate dentistry a solution to the
access to care issue? It is a question
for you to consider.
Why is there
an access is-
sue in the
first place?
Simply put,
dental care is
too expensive
for a majority
of people. It
has been proposed that corporate
chains of dental offices can offer the
much needed care to those who are
presently without access.
Continued on next page
Is Corporate Dentistry the Solution to the Access to Care Issue?
8th Annual Give Kids a Smile
Page 7
The Lingual Groove
Is Corporate Dentistry the Solution to the Access to Care Issue? continued
Corporate dentistry is when an ex-
ternal source of money builds a
business and then employs dentists
to continue that business. There is
nothing wrong with the employment
of a dentist to gain a profit. The
potential problems of this arrange-
ment begin when the dentist-
patient relationship is attacked and
treatment plans become motivated
by increasing profits of the inves-
tors and not by the patient’s best
interests. For example, Dr. Loeben
informed us Medicaid reimburses
twice as much for a crown over a
filling. In too few words, corporate
dentistry may result in a conflict of
interests.
When considering which corporate
business to join, Dr. Loeben sug-
gested reflecting on which structure
is one where your morals won’t be
compromised. Studies have shown
people tend to be more compliant to
authority than we think. It is im-
portant to note that there are a lot of
people who have received excellent
care from corporate offices and the-
se people don’t speak up about their
care.
SPEC would love to hear your
thoughts on this topic! Feel free to
email me, Sam Bona or Scott How-
ell. Please join us for our next SPEC
meeting on April 24th during the
lunch hour in Flagstaff.
~ Jessi Giles ASDOH 2016’
This year Arizona School of Dentis-
try and Oral Health (ASDOH) held
its 8th annual Give Kids a Smile day
(GKAS). The event, held on Friday
February 15th, hosted children from
elementary schools throughout the
Phoenix area. This year’s turnout
was the largest Give Kids a Smile
site in the state with alumni, stu-
dents and faculty coming together to
provide 364 children with the dental
care they needed. Every student at
ASDOH proved an integral part of
the operation, from loading and un-
loading the buses, taking radio-
graphs, providing treatments, help-
ing run the clinics, as well as enter-
taining children in the waiting room
and post-operatively.
School buses started arriving at 8:30
am and by 9:00 the clinics were
filled with young patients waiting to
receive treatments
ranging from clean-
ings, extractions, op-
erative restorations,
endodontic work and
stainless steel crowns.
Post-treatment, the
children were led out-
side to a fun filled,
fair-like arena. There, they were met
with games, music, face-painting,
prizes and volunteers ready to quell
any dental fears.
The incredible success of this year’s
event was due to hard-work and
dedication demonstrated from all the
students, volunteers, faculty and
staff. The compassion for communi-
ty healthcare was extremely evident
through the enthusiasm and efforts
set forth by all the participants. Each
year, the
event
grows
stronger
with larger
numbers
of volunteers and higher numbers of
children being treated. Therefore, it
is exciting to see what the upcoming
years of GKAS will bring.
~ Masha Raykhman ASDOH 2015’
The Lingual Groove
Who Says Dental School Can’t Be Fun???
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