From ASDA

Every year at Annual Session, delegates debate and vote on resolutions, which are formal requests or actions presented to the House of Delegates. If adopted, resolutions can often become official ASDA policy. We then use our policies to drive our advocacy efforts. For example, ASDA’s House of Delegates adopted our H-2 Evidence-Based Solutions to Barriers to Care policy in 2018. We use this policy to advocate for measures that are efficacious and sustainable in reducing barriers to care such as early intervention, Medicaid expansion, and co-location of health services. This issue of Advocacy Brief is dedicated entirely to ASDA’s policies and implementation in real-world settings.

Check out ASDA's potential new policies

Check out the resolutions that will be discussed at this year's House of Delegates meeting here.

From Washington

ASDA's I-4 Policy and Global Tobacco Use

According to new data from the World Health Organization (WHO), tobacco use across the globe is declining. Compared to 1 out of every 5 adults using tobacco in 2000, now 1 out of every 3 adults used tobacco in 2022. The WHO urges countries around the world to continue putting tobacco control policies in place.

Why does it matter? ASDA's I-4 Tobacco, Vaping and Alternatives policy adopted at the 2020 House of Delegates meeting discourages the use of tobacco, e-cigarettes, vaping products and alternatives. ASDA encourages federal research agencies to dedicate more resources to better understand the effects of these products on oral health and to develop evidence-based recommendations.

ASDA's H-11 Policy and Vaccine Administration

A recent study in the Journal of the American Dental Association (JADA) reports that about half of adult patients and pediatric caregivers at a rural federally qualified health center were open to receiving necessary vaccines during their dental appointment. These findings support efforts to administer vaccines during dental visits to improve immunization rates among adults and children.

Why does it matter? ASDA's H-11 Vaccine Administration policy adopted in 2021 encourages dental schools to incorporate vaccine administration into their curricula to administer vaccinations in clinical settings, when appropriate.

ASDA's F-4 Policy and Student Debt

Beginning in October 2023, student loan borrowers resumed making payments on their loans for the first time in three years since the pandemic. the U.S. Department of Education (ED) recently announced that approximately 758,000 borrowers received billing errors during the transition. The Biden Administration is offering a 12-month grace period to repayment trough September 30, 2024, to further aid in the transition.

Why does it matter? ASDA's F-4 Student Debt policy supports initiatives to reduce the burden of debt for dental students. The association urges Congress, state legislatures and state dental associations to pass measures that include, but are not limited to:

Reducing student loan interest rates.
Providing refinancing opportunities to borrowers.
Providing opportunities for loan forgiveness, scholarships, grants and tax deductibility.

From the States

ASDA's Potential New Policy and Licensure Portability

On January 31, 2024, Wisconsin became the fourth state to join the Dental and Dental Hygienist (DDH) Compact. The compact among participating states will create reciprocity to reduce the barriers of licensure portability. Since Iowa became the first state to join the compact on April 27, 2023, Washington, Tennessee, and now Wisconsin have all enacted legislation to join the compact as well. This brings the total to 4 states where legislation has been enacted. Legislation is currently pending in 12 other states and will officially take effect once 7 states join. Check out which states have legislation pending and learn more about the compact here.

Why does it matter? Proposed Resolution 300-2024 will be discussed at this year’s Annual Session House of Delegates meeting in Denver on February 23-25. This resolution discusses the current challenges with the dental licensing process that make it difficult for graduating students and practitioners to move freely among states to practice dentistry. The proposed resolution seeks to support efforts to increase licensure portability, including, but not limited to, interstate dental compacts that allow for increased mobility for dentists to deliver care, assist in reducing barriers to care, and support military members and their families.

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