On July 18, 2023, the AGD and other dental organizations sent a letter to House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA-5) and Ranking Member Frank Pallone (D-NJ-6) urging them to reauthorize the Action for Dental Health (ADH) program (H.R. 3843, the Action for Dental Health Act of 2023) for 5 years (2024 through 2028). This legislation passed through the full House Committee on Energy and Commerce by a unanimous vote (50-0) on July 19, 2023. ADH is a grant program administered by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) to help states implement programs to address dental workforce needs in designated dental health professional shortage areas. This important grant program supports dentists in providing care in underserved areas and expands access to care among underserved populations. Without timely reauthorization of ADH, the program would expire at the end of this fiscal year.
 
Impact on General Dentistry: The AGD proudly cosigned this letter. The AGD strongly believes that by reauthorizing ADH, dentists can better provide treatment and preventative oral health care to underserved populations and improve overall health and wellbeing in the communities – as oral disease left untreated can result in pain, disfigurement, loss of school and work days, nutrition problems, expensive emergency room use for preventable dental conditions and even death.