- Telehealth Study Recruiting Veterans Now
- USDA Delivers Immediate Relief to Farmers, Ranchers and Rural Communities Impacted by Recent Disasters
- Submit Nominations for Partnership for Quality Measurement (PQM) Committees
- Unleashing Prosperity Through Deregulation of the Medicare Program (Executive Order 14192) - Request for Information
- Dr. Mehmet Oz Shares Vision for CMS
- CMS Refocuses on its Core Mission and Preserving the State-Federal Medicaid Partnership
- Social Factors Help Explain Worse Cardiovascular Health among Adults in Rural Vs. Urban Communities
- Reducing Barriers to Participation in Population-Based Total Cost of Care (PB-TCOC) Models and Supporting Primary and Specialty Care Transformation: Request for Input
- Secretary Kennedy Renews Public Health Emergency Declaration to Address National Opioid Crisis
- Secretary Kennedy Renews Public Health Emergency Declaration to Address National Opioid Crisis
- 2025 Marketplace Integrity and Affordability Proposed Rule
- Rural America Faces Growing Shortage of Eye Surgeons
- NRHA Continues Partnership to Advance Rural Oral Health
- Comments Requested on Mobile Crisis Team Services: An Implementation Toolkit Draft
- Q&A: What Are the Challenges and Opportunities of Small-Town Philanthropy?
Oral Symptoms During COVID-19
More than 40 percent of patients with COVID-19 experienced dry mouth, according to a review published in the Journal of Dental Research that looked at the prevalence of oral symptoms associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection. Taste disorders and oral lesions were also common in infected patients.
Addressing Rates of HPV-Associated Oropharyngeal Cancer
The Oral Health Nursing Education and Practice Initiative (OHNEP) recently published “Making the Case for Interprofessional Education and Practice Collaboration to Address Rising Rates of Human Papillomavirus (HPV)-Associated Oropharyngeal Cancers” in the American Dental Education Association’s Journal of Dental Education. The article describes the current state of HPV-associated oropharyngeal cancers in the United States and underscores the need for interprofessional management of patients. The article further emphasizes the importance of the HPV vaccine as the only proven HPV-associated cancer prevention method with the greatest potential to reduce HPV-associated cancers.
Youth Tobacco Cessation Clinician Resource Released
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) released a new resource, “Youth Tobacco Cessation: Considerations for Clinicians.” This resource is designed to support pediatricians and other pediatric health clinicians in screening patients for tobacco and nicotine use and providing behavioral and pharmacological support to help youth quit.
Request Free Oral Health Materials from PCOH
The PA Coalition for Oral Health (PCOH) is launching our new online resource page for stakeholders. Oral health materials are available as pdf downloads and printed copies at no cost. Materials include oral health flyers, posters, and magnets covering the topics of general oral health, kids’ oral health, tobacco and nicotine, workforce, and fluoride.
World Health Organization Releases Global Strategy on Oral Health
The World Health Organization (WHO) released their “Global Strategy on Oral Health.” The Chief Dental Officer of the U.S. Public Health Service is requesting comments on the document/strategy by September 10, 2021 via email. A compilation of comments will then be send to the WHO through the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Global Affairs.
Click here to read the document.
Click here to submit comments.
New Data: Oral Health Care in Children with Special Needs
Contemporary Pediatrics reported that data from the 2016-18 National Survey of Children’s Health showed 84% of children with special health care needs had received a preventive dental visit in the past year, compared with 78% of those who did not have special health care needs. While the study found that children with special health care needs did receive preventive care more often than children with special needs, also found children with special health care needs had higher rates of oral health problems.
Oral Health Care Report Published for People with Special Health Care Needs
The Association of State and Territorial Dental Directors (ASTDD) Best Practices Committee has shared an updated best practice approach report, “Oral Health Care of People with Special Health Care Needs.”
Even Before Coronavirus, Almost Half of Adults in Rural Areas Went Without Dental Care
Millions of rural residents have not seen a dentist in over a year, a recent CDC report reveals.
In 2019, before the coronavirus pandemic forced dentists to shut down, 42 percent of adults in rural areas did not receive dental care, according to the survey. In urban areas, roughly a third of adults did not see a dentist that year.
In both groups, people of color and low-income residents were less likely to have seen a dentist in 2019. These disparities were wider in rural areas, where issues such as transportation barriers, dentist and dental hygienist shortages and lack of health insurance are more common. The coronavirus pandemic has likely exacerbated the need, especially for low-income patients, the report says.
Oral Health Care of People with Special Health Care Needs
The Association of State and Territorial Dental Directors (ASTDD) Best Practices Committee shared an updated Best Practice Approach Report, “Oral Health Care of People with Special Health Care Needs.” This report is the result of efforts by the ASTDD Best Practices Committee to identify and provide information on developing successful practices that address people with special health care needs.
New Report: Oral Health in Patients Experiencing Homelessness
The National Network for Oral Health Access (NNOHA) and the National Health Care for the Homeless Council (NHCHC) developed a publication to bring awareness to the intersection of oral health and behavioral health concerns or cognitive impairment in people experiencing homelessness (PEH). The publication shares the impacts of behavioral health illness on oral health and how behavioral health and dental providers can work together to address this intersection in their practices.