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Recent ADA News

Accreditation needed for Medicare-covered ADI
Washington—Suppliers of the technical component of advanced diagnostic imaging services for Medicare beneficiaries must be accredited to be reimbursed for the claim if the service is performed on or after Jan. 1, 2012. The accreditation requirement applies to suppliers of the images and not the physician's interpretation.

California bill calls for "rigorous study" of expanded dental procedures
Sacramento, Calif.—Legislation approved by the state senate Jan. 26 would create a dentist-led Statewide Office of Oral Health within the state Department of Public Health charged with addressing the "significant human and financial costs" of unmet dental needs.

Report cites quality improvement efforts, opportunities
Washington—Quality improvement efforts in organized dentistry and throughout the health care system offer opportunities to increase access to care and “improve and maintain the oral health of the U.S. population,” says a report funded by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and DentaQuest Institute and intended to advance the national health policy dialogue.

AADB Mid-Year Meeting scheduled for April
The American Association of Dental Boards’ 2012 Mid-Year Meeting takes place April 22-23 at ADA Headquarters.

Past ADA trustee Dr. Lloyd J. Phillips dies at 89
Indianapolis—Dr. Lloyd J. Phillips, a past ADA trustee who represented the 7th District from 1970 to 1976, died Jan. 15 here. He was 89.

Vital and Health Statistics
Hyattsville, Md. – Seven percent of American children aged 17 and younger had unmet dental need in 2010 because their families could not afford dental care, the National Center for Health Statistics said in an analysis of data collected by U.S. Census Bureau interviewers and reported in the Vital and Health Statistics series.

ADA creates new committee, process to maintain CDT Code
The ADA Council on Dental Benefit Programs is launching a new process to maintain the CDT Code. 

Denver Nuggets drop in for TeamSmile day
NBA high five: Denver Nuggets guard-forward Jordan Hamilton greets a young patient at the TeamSmile dental care day held Dec. 17, 2011, at the Pepsi Center in Denver. More than 100 dental professionals and volunteers provided free dental treatment and preventive care to 125 underserved children from 10 local organizations. 

ADA seeks treasurer candidates
Members interested in running for ADA treasurer can go on ADA.org to find the information necessary for filing for candidacy.

Speaker of the House candidates face June 21 filing deadline
The 2011 House of Delegates changed the rules for how an ADA member becomes a candidate for speaker of the House.

Special Care Dentistry to meet in April
Scottsdale, Ariz.—Registration is open for the 24th Annual Meeting on Special Care Dentistry, set for April 26-29 at the Hilton Scottsdale Resort and Villas. 

New surveys available
Two new reports are now available by the ADA Health Policy Resources Center. 

Nation's capital to welcome new dentists
Washington—For new dentists seeking clinical, practice management and professional issue courses tailored specifically to their needs all in one place, there is nothing like the ADA New Dentist Conference.

Resolution on patient-centered outcomes research adopted
Las Vegas—The 2011 House of Delegates adopted a resolution that spells out the ADA’s policy on comparative effectiveness research—also known as patient-centered outcomes research.

Top rated member benefits
Below is a list of how valuable ADA members rated Association benefits in 2011 (with 5 being extremely valuable; 4 very valuable; 3 somewhat valuable; 2 not very valuable; and 1 not at all valuable).

Ready for NCDHM?
February is National Children’s Dental Health Month and the ADA offers both free resources and products for purchase that encourage elementary and high school children to “Rock Your Smile.” 

Create customized office manual with updated ADA guide
An updated guide is available in the ADA Catalog to assist dental practices in developing a customized employee office manual.

Researchers receive NIDCR grant to study lactobacilli genome
New York—A research team at the New York University College of Dentistry has been awarded a $2.2 million grant to sequence the genome of lactobacilli strains to look for a relationship to severe early childhood caries.

Soap actress named New Jersey Give Kids A Smile spokeswoman
Dayton, N.J.—Brooke English’s smile was usually directed at Adam Chandler. Or Tad Martin. Or Edmund Grey. Or Tom Cudahy. 

Share GKAS photos with ADA News, Facebook
Help us celebrate the 10-year anniversary of Give Kids A Smile!

NJ legislature officially declares February as CDHM
Trenton, N.J.—The New Jersey legislature, with the urging of the New Jersey Dental Association, has declared February Children’s Dental Health Month. 

Four reasons to save the date for the ADA Annual Session
San Francisco—Planning a trip to the ADA’s 153rd Annual Session Oct. 18–21 can benefit your practice and your personal development and offer some outstanding opportunities to enjoy the attractions of the City by the Bay.

Chinese dentists at Annual Session
Las Vegas—A bit of China came to the ADA Annual Session last year when the Peking University School of Stomatology hosted a reception to celebrate the inauguration of its overseas alumni association.

Winners of 2011 office design competition named in Vegas
Las Vegas—Wells Fargo unveiled the winners of the 2011 Dental Office Design Competition Oct. 12 during the ADA Annual Session.

Orthodontist qualifies for two national golf championships, sets sights on third
Bethlehem, Pa.—Orthodontist Joe Viechnicki enjoyed the experiences of a lifetime in 2011, playing in not one but two United States Golf Association championships: the U.S. Senior Open and the U.S. Senior Amateur. As 2012 rolls around, he’s poised for a run at the British Seniors Open Amateur Championship Aug. 8-10 in Wales. 

Dr. Gabriel Rincón named RWJF community leader
New York—Dr. Gabriel Rincón, a Brooklyn dentist who knows firsthand how tough it can be for Hispanic immigrants to adjust to life in the United States, has been honored as a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Community Health Leader for his tireless work as an advocate for health, education and social issues affecting New York Latinos.

New laws mandate recycling of old electronics
Getting rid of that old computer isn't so easy anymore but the extra effort will promote a green environment.

Register now for March Evidence-Based Dentistry Champions Conference
Dental peers from the worlds of academia and clinical practice can meet and learn about evidence-based dentistry together at the ADA Evidence-Based Dentistry Champions Conference, March 8-10 at ADA Headquarters.

Uniformity in dental licensure grows
The American Board of Dental Examiners has extended its reach to 42 states. 

FDA advises of pain medicine mix-up
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration wants health professionals to be aware of a packaging problem at a Nebraska pharmaceutical plant where there were three instances of opiates being mixed in with over-the-counter pain medications.

Penn Dental Medicine adds DScD degree to academic options
Philadelphia—Penn Dental Medicine is adding a new doctoral degree to its academic programs to provide students the opportunity to pursue research across disciplines.

CareCredit celebrates 25th anniversary
CareCredit is celebrating its 25th anniversary of helping patients finance their health care. 

Dental spending growth resumes
Washington—The dental economy gained traction in 2010 as patient out-of-pocket spending rebounded from a sharp recessionary decline, analysts reported Jan. 9 in the government’s annual snapshot of national health spending.

Clarification on letter in December 2011 issue of JADA
A letter that appeared in the December 2011 issue of The Journal of the American Dental Association stated that, as of Jan. 1. 2012, dentists would be required to display an automated external defibrillator (AED) in their office.

Dental law, ethics conference set for Feb. 24-25
New Orleans—The American College of Legal Medicine will host its 4th annual Ethics and Legal Aspects of Dentistry Conference Feb. 24-25 at the Hyatt Regency here. 

Fraudulent ADA dues billing reported
If you recently received a membership renewal communication by fax, take a closer look. 

DQA continues its mission of defining quality care
The Dental Quality Alliance met at ADA Headquarters Dec. 2 and continues to make progress advancing oral health quality measurements.

Making your New Year's resolutions stick
New Year’s resolutions—they’re easy to make but easier to break. Why is it so hard to make the healthy changes that we know can help us feel better and live longer? And why is it so hard to make them last? National Institutes of Health-funded scientists are learning more about how we can make healthy changes and, even more important, how we can sustain them.

Free training on fraud, abuse laws posted online
Washington—The Office of Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced it would provide 11 new and free videos and podcasts that can help health care providers learn about compliance with health care fraud and abuse laws.

UNC student wins top prize in Student Ethics Video Contest
In learning to make treatment decisions, dental students are sometimes caught between performing the care they need to fulfill graduation requirements and doing what’s best for the patient.

What does it mean to be a certified dental technician?
Dr. Kevin Sessa is willing to bet that most dentists don’t understand what it takes to be a certified dental laboratory technician or what it means.

Explore success with posterior resins in ADA CE Online course
ADA CE Online is offering a new course on posterior resin restorations.

Workforce model report available
The ADA Health Policy Resources Center released the 2011 ADA Dental Workforce Model: 2009-2030.

NLRB delays poster rule until April 30
Washington—The National Labor Relations Board has agreed to postpone the effective date of its employee rights notice-posting rule to April 30.

Call for comments on CERP's proposed changes to eligibility criteria extended to Feb. 1
The ADA Council on Dental Education and Licensure has proposed that “commercial entities”—defined by the ADA Continuing Education Recognition Program as companies that produce, market, re-sell or distribute health care goods or services consumed by or used on patients—should no longer be eligible to apply to become ADA CERP approved providers of continuing dental education.

House urges districts to add more new dentist delegates
Las Vegas—This past October the ADA House of Delegates passed an initiative designed to promote more inclusiveness in its ranks.

Good Samaritan rewarded with new smile
Unemployed carpenter Wayne Sabaj found a fortune, and then fortune found him.

Electronic health records primer
A new resource on electronic health records is posted in the Dental Practice Hub on ADA.org.

Reaching out to the world
Broken Arrow, Okla.—As a teenager volunteering at a missionary training center in Monterrey, Mexico, Dr. Ron Lamb was called on to help haul the center’s trash trailer to the city dump. The dumpster was filled with a week’s worth of kitchen waste, and he was horrified to see people driven by hunger picking through it, looking for scraps of food amid the waste.

Longtime Vermont, Maine association execs retire
Two New England dental associations are about to lose a combined 57 years of management experience with the retirements of their long-time executive directors.