- 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?
- HRSA Administrator Carole Johnson, Joined by Co-Chair of the Congressional Black Maternal Health Caucus Congresswoman Lauren Underwood, Announces New Funding, Policy Action, and Report to Mark Landmark Year of HRSA's Enhancing Maternal Health Initiative
- Biden-Harris Administration Announces $60 Million Investment for Adding Early Morning, Night, and Weekend Hours at Community Health Centers
Introducing the CareQuest Institute for Oral Health
On March 29th, the DentaQuest Partnership for Oral Health Advancement became part of a new organization called the CareQuest Institute for Oral Health.
CareQuest Institute is a nonprofit committed to building a future in which equitable systems promote excellent health, allowing people everywhere to reach their full potential. This next evolution of work amplifies and expands upon the programming, resources, and strengths of past organizations, including the DentaQuest Partnership, DentaQuest Foundation, and DentaQuest Institute.
As CareQuest Institute, the more robust portfolio reaches across grantmaking, research, health improvement programs, policy and advocacy, and education as well as dental benefits, care delivery, and innovation advancements designed to improve the oral health system. As a new organization, they can broaden their impact and move faster together toward a system designed for everyone.
CDC Initiative Creates New Water Fluoridation Technology
A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) funded research initiative offers access to optimally fluoridated water for up to 19 million people in the U.S. for the first time. The new fluoridation method is designed to dissolve in a small amount of water, much like the chlorine tablets used in swimming pools. This tablet system could allow nearly 32,000 small public utilities – often in underserved, rural areas – to contribute to the national Healthy People goal of providing access to fluoridated water to 77.1% of the U.S. population by 2030. The new system is still pending approval in Pennsylvania.
New Technology – Water Fluoridation Tablets
Technology funded by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention could give 19 million people in the U.S. access to optimally fluoridated water for the first time. The system uses a fluoride tablet that dissolves in water, similar to how chlorine tablets work for swimming pools. Learn more.
OHRC Oral Health Resource Bulletin Released
The National Maternal and Child Oral Health Resource Center (OHRC) released the latest issue of the “Oral Health Resource Bulletin,” a periodic publication designed to stimulate thinking and creativity within the maternal and child health community by providing information about selected materials of interest. This bulletin features materials on the COVID-19 pandemic, surveillance, policy, professional education and practice, program development, public awareness and education, and systems integration.
New Study: School-Based Dental Programs and Cavities
A school-based cavity prevention program involving nearly 7,000 elementary school students reduced cavities by more than 50 percent, according to a study led by researchers at New York University College of Dentistry. The findings were published March 1, 2021 in the Journal of the American Dental Association.
ADA Releases Toolkit for Increasing Vaccine Confidence
The American Dental Association (ADA) released a toolkit to help dental providers increase patients’ confidence in COVID-19 vaccines. The downloadable resource includes answers to commonly asked questions, advice for social media interactions, and tip sheets for dispelling myths about the vaccines and sharing science-based recommendations for pregnant women or those planning to start a family.
Rural Early Childhood Health Promotion Toolkit Released
The Rural Health Information Hub, the University of Minnesota Rural Health Research Center, and the NORC Walsh Center for Rural Health Analysis created a toolkit to help rural organizations with implementing early childhood health promotion programs in their communities. The toolkit expands on information published in previous toolkits, including the Oral Health Toolkit.
PCCY Announces Give Kids a Smile Week
Public Citizens for Children and Youth (PCCY) is hosting “Give Kids a Smile Week” from March 29th to April 2nd, 2021. Give Kids a Smile Week will connect dentists with children ages 1 to 18, especially children who are uninsured, under-insured, or haven’t seen a dentist in over one year. Dentists in Bucks, Delaware, Montgomery, and Philadelphia counties will open their offices free of charge to children to have their mouths examined, teeth cleaned, and in some cases, cavities filled, and teeth pulled. PCCY is looking for volunteers to help schedule appointments and translate during appointments. Stakeholders can also distribute the flyer to friends and colleagues to let more families know about getting care.
Click here for more information.
Click here to download the flyer.
New Resource: Integrating Oral Health into Primary Care
The National Maternal and Child Oral Health Resource Center (OHRC) published “Integrating Oral Health Care into Primary Care: A Resource Guide.” This guide features resources to help health professionals, program administrators, and others implement oral health care integration in materials, programs, and systems of care. It features descriptions and links to materials on surveillance, policy, practice guidance, practice tools, professional education and training, and program development.
New ADA HPI Workforce Infographic Released
The American Dental Association (ADA) Health Policy Institute (HPI) released a new infographic, “The Dentist Workforce – Key Facts.” It contains dentist-to-population ratios by state and change over the past decade, age distribution and retirement age, as well as gender and racial and ethnic composition of the workforce.