A nonpartisan group of more than 90 organizations is asking Congress to lift a federal funding ban that is prohibiting states and tribal communities from accessing health workforce grants for dental therapy programs.
The group sent a letter to the House and Senate appropriations subcommittees asking for the funding ban to be eliminated in the 2023 fiscal year appropriations bills, according to an April 11 news release.
The group is asking Congress to fully fund the alternative dental healthcare provider demonstration grant program, which supports dental therapy. It requested at least $5 million in funding for the program so states can take advantage of the resource, according to the news release.
"Congress recognized the opportunity to expand access to dental care through dental therapists more than 10 years ago. Lifting the funding ban on dental therapy programs would allow states and tribes to pilot and scale these programs to increase access to oral health for communities that face the highest barriers to it," Myechia Minter-Jordan, MD, president and CEO of CareQuest Institute for Oral Health, said in the release.