Page 16 - Bulletin Vol 27 No 1 - Jan. - April 2022 FINAL

News |

News | Legislative Victories

One of our most important, but oft times overlooked, member benefit is our advocacy. Our successes with

our politicians only comes from the strength of our membership and being able to say we represent the
majority of all dentists.

On the local front, on March 28, both the New York State Assembly (146-0) and the New York State Senate
(63-0) unanimously passed the NYSDA dental hygiene bill, A.9478-A (Lupardo) / S.6694-B (Harckham), to
allow dental hygienists to use nitrous oxide and local infiltration anesthesia to help a dentist with all dental
procedures. This legislation will now be sent to the governor for action. The governor is expected to sign
the bill into law. Also on March 28, the New York State Assembly unanimously passed A.7754-C

(McDonald), which is NYSDA’s dental assisting bill to allow registered dental assistants to place and remove
temporary restorations. S.8533-A (Harckham) is the Senate version of that bill and is identical to the Assem-
bly version. This identical legislation will enable the Senate to more easily pass the bill. Both bills are in the
Senate Higher Education Committee awaiting release to the Senate floor calendar for a vote.

The New York State Assembly has passed, by a vote of 105-43, a bill – A.832-A (Gottfried) – which NYSDA
supports that prohibits the use of "most favored nation" clauses, which arbitrarily lower reimbursement
levels for the provision of health care services, bans the use of contract language that prohibits the ability of

any health care provider to make referrals to other health care providers, and prohibits insurers from man-
dating the substitution of a pharmaceutical agent (other than a generic equivalent) by any person other
than the prescribing professional. The Assembly bill has been delivered to the Senate for action. The
identical Senate version of the bill – S.3231-A (Sanders) is also on the Senate floor calendar for a vote.

At the national level, the ADA happily announced that, with the help of your advocacy and their lobbyists,
the U.S. House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed the Ensuring Lasting Smiles ACT (ELSA), H.R.
1916, on April 4. ELSA would require all private group and individual health plans to cover medically

necessary services resulting from a congenital anomaly or birth defect, including inpatient and out patient
care and reconstructive services and procedures, as well as adjunctive dental, orthodontic, or prosthodontic
support.

There is still work to be done and the ADA will continue to advocate for the U.S. Senate to hold a vote and
get this legislation signed into law! But to continue to do this, unfortunately, takes money. So when you
are asked to contribute to the American Dental Political Action Committee (ADPAC) or New York’s version,
the Empire Dental Political Action Committee (EDPAC), please consider doing so. Even a small donation can

make a difference! On the other hand, something that costs you nothing and can have a big impact is to
talk with a colleague who isn’t a member. Explain what we do, invite them to a meeting or course. Our
successes are also tied to the number of dentists the ADA and NYSDA represent. Forty years ago
membership was close to 90%, today it’s closer to 60%! If it falls below 50% our political clout will be gone.
Make it a goal to get just one non-member to join, that makes us stronger and will positively impact your
career for years to come.

16 | Nassau County Dental Society ⬧ www.nassaudental.org