The AAPD submitted a statement for the hearing record of the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP). This was in conjunction with the committee’s May 14, 2025 hearing on FY 2026 funding of federal health programs, featuring testimony from HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. The AAPD made the following requests:

• “We urge the Committee to support the Title VII program’s re-authorization in 2025, recognizing that the program is making a significant impact in the recruitment of dentists to serve underserved communities as well as developing new and needed pediatric and general practice dental faculty.”
• “The AAPD urges the Committee to encourage and support continued program efforts at the CDC [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] to support states and local communities with accurate data and information concerning safe community water fluoridation. We likewise urge the Committee to request that the FDA [Food and Drug Administration] halt any effort to pull agency-approved safe supplements from the market this year.“
  "The AAPD is extremely concerned about the misinformation being spread to the people of the United States and the consequences of the cessation of water fluoridation and safely prescribed fluoride supplements. Much of the recent discourse from the Trump administration is based on incomplete information and a false interpretation of studies that contain inaccurate information or significantly limited information, undermining their usefulness and accuracy.
• “By integrating nutrition education and oral health promotion into HHS programs like Head Start and WIC and in collaboration with other food nutrition programs run through the U.S. Department of Agriculture like SNAP and NSLP, we can address both the root causes and consequences of poor oral health in vulnerable populations. The AAPD encourages efforts to support funding for each of these programs and support to establish innovative programming to improve oral health awareness and access to more nutritious options that improve oral health and well-being.”
• “The AAPD emphasizes that dental loan repayment programs and scholarships that incentivize dental professionals to serve in rural and other underserved areas are critically important to building the dental workforce pipeline throughout the U.S. It is essential that these programs are maintained, grown, and have the support of a [HRSA] Chief Dental Officer to coordinate and manage the programs.”
• “The AAPD urges the Committee to reauthorize and staff the CDC Oral Health program. The program is essential in the effort to prevent cavities, gum disease, and other painful and serious conditions by supporting dental education, data collection, school-based sealant care for low-income children, workforce development, and research into gaps in patient care.”
• “The AAPD requests that the [CMS] Chief Dental Officer continue to work with the CMS Administrator and leadership throughout the agency to support oral health programs within Medicare, Medicaid, CHIP and the state exchange marketplace.”
• “The AAPD asks that the Committee support NIDCR as a separate and independent institute within NIH and not risk the loss of dedicated funding for oral health and craniofacial research or the loss of expertise and research innovation that comes from targeted oral health research efforts.”

Click here for a copy of the entire statement, which was also distributed to all Senators serving on the HELP Committee.

For any questions, please contact Chief Operating Officer and General Counsel C. Scott Litch at 773-938-4759 or slitch@aapd.org.