ISDS public affairs campaign builds bridges for access

Springfield, Ill.鈥擳here is a solution to the oral health crisis in Illinois, says Dr. Larry Osborne, Illinois State Dental Society president. “It’s called the Bridge to Healthy Smiles campaign,” he says in a video posted at www.bridgetohealthysmiles.com, describing “a diverse group of people and organizations committed to bridging the oral health care gap and helping working families access dental care.”

A look at the ADA State Public Affairs Program

The ADA State Public Affairs Program works with state dental societies to develop and implement strategies for “effective advocacy” and “position” in the public policy arena.

Established in 2006 and operational in 2007 (ADA News Today 05/11/07 State dental leaders share public affairs progress reports), the SPA invites state dental societies to apply to the program annually for public affairs support. Volunteer leaders, member dentists, are involved in almost all phases of the SPA, and the ADA Board of Trustees and House of Delegates receive reports on the program. See also American Dental Association Strategic Plan: 2007-2010 PDF at www.ADA.org.

The campaign Web site is but one element of an ADA-assisted state public affairs effort to increase access to dental care throughout Illinois while creating awareness of the problems and the need. Now in its third year, the ISDS Bridge to Healthy Smiles is gaining patient advocacy, legislative attention and media recognition as well as the backing of a 29-member coalition of oral health care advocates and community groups.

Mothers on public assistance stand at press conferences and go on camera imploring Gov. Pat Quinn “and our elected leaders in Springfield to act now to make dental care a priority.” They describe “desperate need” and months long searches for dental care for their children. “For the more than 2 million low and middle income Illinois families who rely on public aid, getting an appointment is often a struggle,” the BTHS coalition says in the Web site video.

The ISDS encourages grassroots involvement of dentists and patients in addressing barriers to care to complement a BTHS legislative strategy that achieved much in 2009 and seeks more in 2010. State Rep. David Miller, a private practice dentist, appeared at a BTHS press conference to describe a legislative plan to increase funding for government-sponsored dental health care, attract dentists to underserved areas and develop new dental clinics throughout the state.

“We were successful in getting part of our three point legislative plan passed despite challenging political and fiscal times,” ISDS public affairs advisers said in a draft report summarizing the campaign’s second-year progress. “We consider our accomplishments to date a major victory and plan to go back this year to get funding rates to a level that will allow dentists to treat more patients who rely on government sponsored health insurance.”

Cited as legislative accomplishments:

• SB 1393 established a process to award grants for dental clinic development;
• HB 489 created a deferred compensation plan for health care providers, and
• SB 275 provided student loan repayment compensation for dentists serving in designated shortage areas.

Building a Bridge to Healthy Smiles

“Because our proposed solutions are well thought-out and based on strongly supported facts and statistics, Illinois lawmakers regard dentistry’s position as being the ‘expert’ one,” said Dr. Larry Osborne, Illinois State Dental Society president. “The organizations we have partnered with through coalition building have added even more weight to our case.”

Coalition partners are listed at www.bridgetohealthysmiles.com. As the coalition adds new members some may not appear immediately on the list The coalition had 29 partners as of March 17, 2010.

Media relations is another key aspect of the ISDS public affairs campaign, and the State Journal-Register in Springfield, a daily newspaper and the state’s oldest, featured an extensive report on the BTHS Feb. 15, 2010, quoting ISDS Executive Director Greg Johnson, a private practice dentist and a state legislator. All three addressed “the difficulties low-income Illinoisans encounter in obtaining dental care.”

“The BTHS campaign is the answer to a complex problem which requires a multifaceted solution,” Dr. Osborne, ISDS president, told the ADA News. “Decision makers now know where the solutions are to be found and more importantly who to seek out to find solutions.”

The campaign is crafting a strategy to focus on specialty care in 2010 while continuing to push for a $94 million increase in annual funding for Medicaid dental services, Mr. Johnson said. “ISDS wanted to get control of the access to care issue for the Medicaid population and not always be in the position of playing defense.

“Our plan of raising Medicaid rates to at least a level that begins to cover the cost of providing the care, building more public clinics and giving incentives to dentists to locate in underserved areas with student loan repayment and deferred compensation options is a plan that places ISDS on the offense and leading a coalition of supporters,” he said. “Over the last two and half years, the legislature has gotten to know the parts of our BTHS campaign.”

Strategists see increased funding for dental services as “the toughest challenge for campaign” while the state struggles with an estimated $13 billion budget shortfall. Meanwhile, downstate patients may be more than four hours away from the nearest dentist or dental clinic and in areas where there are clinics, there is often a six month wait for treatment.