Center for Public Policy and Advocacy

1. Center for Public Policy and Advocacy Jack E. Bresch, Associate Executive Director and ADEA CPPA Director (BreschJ@ADEA.org) Deborah Darcy, Director of Congressional Affairs (DarcyD@ADEA.org) Monette D. McKinnon, Director of Legislative Policy Development (McKinnonM@ADEA.org) Myla J. Moss, Director of Congressional Relations and Regulatory Affairs (MossM@ADEA.org)

2. Dental Health:Nurturing the Health Care System’s Neglected Stepchild Health policy forum for Congressional staff conducted by the Alliance for Health Reform Jack Bresch – Director of Public Policy and Advocacy ADEA

3. Support in the Senate Comprehensive legislation aimed at increasing access to oral health services for low-income adults and children Senator Jeff Bingaman (D-NM)

4. Moratorium on CMS Regulations • Prohibited Medicaid payment for GME • Limits on Medicaid payments for nursing homes • Fragmented case management for children with disabilities • Prohibited funding for specialized medical transport

5. Dental Access in Underserved Communities Act (HR 6613) • $300 million annually National Health Services Corp • $33.6 million for centers of excellence • $35.7 million for the health career opportunities program

6. Higher Education Act • Loan Forgiveness for Service in Areas of National Need • Perkins Loan Increases • Graduate Assistance in Areas of National Need • Cost Expenditure Lists for Universities • State Penalties for failure to increase funding “College Access Challenge Grant”

7. NIH Loses $1.2 billion Increase • Meant to compensate for inflation in the last five years • Attached to a Medicaid bill meant to halt any cut in the program that serves low-income children and families • Did not receive enough votes to make it to the floor

8. Economic Hardship Deferment Eliminated • College Cost Reduction and Access Act • Effective July 1, 2009 eliminates the 20/220 pathway of the economic hardship deferment • Dental students who enroll in residency training programs at accredited U.S. dental schools continue to be eligible for in-school deferment for the duration of their residency training if the school registers its dental residents as students.

9. ADEA Board of Directors Issues Policy Statement on Community-Based Dental Education • America’s oral health access problems would be lessened if dental students were not “isolated” inside dental school clinics • Recommend is that dental education be integrated with other health disciplines in rural, frontier, and urban underserved community venues

10. Dental Student Lobby DayFebruary 11-12, 2009

11. THAT’S ALL FOR NOW….