CELEBRATE
NATIONAL SMILE MONTH WITH US! 
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CONGRATULATIONS! |
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To Mary Pat Burgess, the Chicago Department of Public Health's Director of School-based Oral Health, who was honored with a Golden Toothbrush Award from Chicago's Erie Family Health Center on May 14. The Chicago School Oral Health Program has been a Smiles Across America® treatment partner since 2004, and now 60,000 children annually through the Chicago Public Schools.
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| ANNUAL FUND
Please consider contributing to Oral Health America's Annual Fund, which supports our programming and initiatives to improve America's oral health through access, education and advocacy.
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New OHA Survey Shows Americans Strongly Support Guaranteed Dental Coverage in Healthcare Reform
Nearly 2 in 3 U.S. adults (63%) think that it is important that dental coverage is part of an overall health reform package, and 40 percent say it is very important, according to a new public opinion survey commissioned by Oral Health America.
Sponsored by the Dental Trade Alliance Foundation, and conducted by Harris Interactive®, the survey was released at the launch of National Smile Month on June 5 at the National Museum of Dentistry in Baltimore.
According to the survey results, a vast majority of adults know that lack of proper dental care can lead to overall poor health. About 4 in 5 adults, fully 81 percent, agree that dental benefits are as important as general medical benefits in one's overall healthcare benefit package, and nearly half (48 percent), strongly agree with this statement.
The survey shows that a majority of adults currently have a dentist and some form of dental benefit. A significant number of adults, however, currently report having an unmet dental need.
- Almost one out of every six people reported holding off going to the dentist because of uncertainty about their job and/or the economy.
- Almost one-third of those with low incomes are holding off on seeing the dentist, even though their needs are great.
The desire to have some level of guaranteed dental coverage as part of any health care reform effort is clearly present in the U.S. population. Many even go as far as saying that, even if the government has to provide it, dental coverage should be extended to all uninsured Americans, especially children and the elderly.
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National Smile Month Launch Kicks-Off Campaign to Promote Effective Oral Health Habits and Policies
With close to 60 local, state and national oral health leaders in attendence, Oral Health America celebrated the launch of National Smile Month at The Dr. Samuel D. Harris National Museum of Dentistry on June 5.
The event recognized Maryland's significant progress in addressing oral health disparities, focused attention on oral health and healthcare reform, and served as the kick-off to National Smile Month an annual international campaign to promote the importance of self care, regular dental visits, healthy food choices and effective oral health policies.
"We are grateful to the support of oral health advocates in Maryland, and colleagues across the country, who are collaborating with Oral Health America on the launch of National Smile Month," said Beth Truett, President and CEO. "The national focus on healthcare reform means that it is more important than ever to communicate to policymakers and the public that total health includes the health of of our mouths, and that communities can come together to improve oral health and access to oral health care."
At the event, Dr. Hazel Harper recieved Oral Health America's Marvin Goldstein Award for Outstanding Volunteerism for her work as the co-founder and project director of the Deamonte Driver Dental Project. Read More!
The event included the release of the results of the Oral Health America Dental Survey, presented by Gary Price, President and CEO, Dental Trade Alliance.
John Colmers, Maryland's Secretary of Health and Mental Hygiene, spoke about not only the importance of self care, but also the responsibility that society has to ensure that everyone is able to get the dental care that they need.
Thank you to our National Smile Month sponsors: Dental Trade Alliance, National Museum of Dentistry, Patterson Dental, and UnitedHealthcare Dental.
Pictured above at the launch are (left to right):Laurie Norris, attorney, Public Justice Center; Beth Truett, president/CEO, Oral Health America; John Colmers, secretary, Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene; Dr. Hazel Harper, co-founder and project director, Deamonte Driver Dental Project; Gary Price, CEO, Dental Trade Alliance; Dr. Les Seldin, chair, Board of Visitors, National Museum of Dentistry; Rosemary Fetter, executive director, National Museum of Dentistry; Margaret Cottrell, president, Confirm Monitoring Systems, Inc., and treasurer, Oral Health America Board of Directors.
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Donor Profile:Samantha Niessen
"Oral Health America is one of the charities I donate to because I worked there and had the opportunity to understand how important unrestricted dollars are as well as experience its signature programs. Answering the phone at OHA made me understand that oral health is a serious issue, and that we were working to help real people. Oral Health America needs and appreciates all contributions, even small ones, and works to get the most out of each one."
Samantha Niessen is a former Oral Health America employee who now lives in California. She has remained a consistent donor since leaving the organization almost five years ago.
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OHA Receives ADA Foundation Grant for Smiles Across America® Program
Oral Health America received a Give Kids A Smile Program Growth Grant from the ADA Foundation, presented to the organization at the Give Kids A Smile Awards Gala on May 12.
The ADA Foundation grant funds will be used to expand crucial restorative care services by OHA's Smiles Across America® partners in California, Minnesota and Nevada. Each of the sites has a history of exceptional care and commitment to the children in their communities and with this support they will have the opportunity to significantly improve the oral health of children in need of care.
In Ventura County, California, the Santa Barbara/Ventura County Dental Care Foundation will use the funds to expand the Adopt-a-School program, which provides preventive and restorative care to 2nd graders; in Minnesota, to expand restorative care services in four areas of the state; and in Nevada, to increase the capacity of the 1Day program, a partnership with University of Nevada Las Vegas (UNLV) School Of Dental Medicine which provides free preventive, restorative, surgical, endodontic and orthodontic care.
"The ADA Foundation is proud to have Oral Health America as a 2009 Give Kids A Smile Program Growth grantee. It is gratifying to create synergy and promote children's oral heath through Give Kids a Smile, and programs such as Smiles Across America," said Dr. Arthur A. Dugoni, President of the ADA Foundation Board of Directors.
Pictured above are Dr. Kathy O'Laughlin, executive director and COO, American Dental Association; Stephen Kess, vice president of Global Professional Relations, Henry Schein Inc., and chair, ADA's Give Kids A Smile National Advisory Board; and Beth Truett, president and CEO, Oral Health America.
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with your friends, relatives and colleagues. There's still time to write a letter to the editor or issue a press release about the importance of oral health. Take a look at our 
