Dental Education

Overview

The ADA has a vested interest in ensuring the cost of dental education is not a prohibitive factor for those wanting to practice in underserved areas or pursue careers in teaching, research, and public health.

Equally important is the need to ensure our dental schools have an adequate supply of well-trained faculty; can provide the most modern teaching facilities and equipment; and are plentiful enough to generate a sufficient number of well-trained clinicians, researchers, faculty, and public health professionals. 

The ADA supports increasing appropriations for federally supported grant, scholarship, and service payback (i.e., loan forgiveness) programs, with particular emphasis on enhancing the supply and distribution of the nation's dental workforce. The Association also supports expanding the use of federal direct loan and loan guarantee programs and providing tax incentives to help dental students finance all or part of their education. 

The Association is particularly supportive of the federal government’s Title VII health professions education and training program, which provides a significant source of funding for dental schools to plan, develop and operate residency programs in general, pediatric, and public health dentistry. Title VII is also a means of alleviating the access problem, since many dental residents perform clinical work in facilities that provide a disproportionate level of care to the underserved (e.g., dental schools, community health centers, etc.).

Letters and Testimony

• October 24, 2011—Coalition letter commenting on the draft version of Advisory Committee on Training in Primary Care Medicine and Dentistry’s ninth annual report, Priming the Pump of Primary Care.
• May 25, 2010—Letter expressing support for S. 616, the Enhancing Safety in Medicine Utilizing Leading Advanced Simulation Technologies to Improve Outcomes Now Act of 2009.  (PDF)
• February 23, 2010—Letter commenting on the draft version of Advisory Committee on Training in Primary Care Medicine and Dentistry’s eighth annual report, The Redesign of Primary Care with Implications for Training. (PDF)
• January 15, 2010—Letter commending Rep. Randy Forbes (R-Va. 4th) for introducing H.R. 855, the Enhancing Safety in Medicine Utilizing Leading Advanced Simulation Technologies to Improve Outcomes Now Act of 2009. (PDF)
• August 31, 2009—Letter commending Reps. Patrick Kennedy (D-R.I. 1st) and Mike Simpson (R-Idaho 2nd) for introducing H.R. 1930, the Primary Care Dental Academic Workforce Development Act of 2009. (PDF)
• October 30, 2007—Press release from Reps. Ron Kind (D-Wisc. 3rd) and Dave Camp (R-Mich. 4th), urging support for the Native American Full Access to Dental Care Act of 2007 (H.R. 3960). (PDF)
• April 20, 2007—Coalition letter urging House Ways and Means Committee member Philip English (R-Pa. 3rd) to support the Higher Education Affordability and Equity Act of 2007 (HR 1407). (PDF)

ADA Resources

• ADA Policies, Positions & Statements
• Dental Education & Careers
• Science & Research
• Dental Research
• Federal Student Aid Programs and Educational Tax Benefits for Dental Students and New Dentists (PDF)

Federal Student Aid

• Student Aid: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
• Student Aid: Students.gov
• Student Aid: Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA)
• Student Aid: Indian Health Service (IHS)
• Student Aid: National Health Service Corps (NHSC)
• Student Aid: National Institutes of Health (NIH)
• Student Aid: National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR)
• Student Aid: Department of Education
• Student Aid: Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)
• Student Aid: Internal Revenue Service (IRS)
• Student Aid: United States Air Force
• Student Aid: United States Army
• Student Aid: United States Coast Guard
• Student Aid: United States Marine Corps
• Student Aid: United States Navy

Additional Resources

• American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry (AAPD)
• American Association for Dental Research (AADR)
• American Dental Education Association (ADEA)
• American Student Dental Association (ASDA) 
• Title VII / Advisory Committee on Training in Primary Care Medicine and Dentistry

Contact Us

For additional information, please contact:

• Robert J. Burns, Federal Affairs
• Jennifer Fisher, Congressional Affairs
• Jeffrey Troupe, State Government Affairs

Federal Affairs
1111 14th Street NW, Suite 1100
Washington, DC 20005
202.898.2400
Fax: 202.898.2437
E-mail: govtpol@ada.org

State Government Affairs
ADA Chicago Headquarters
211 East Chicago Avenue
Chicago, IL 60611
312.440.2525
Fax: 312.440.3539
E-mail: govtpol@ada.org