A Message from the President
Dr. Howley extends an invitation to all members to get involved in the AGD Read now | Listen now ( requires Windows Media Player)

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Pre-Fellows, Be Part of the Academy's Class of 2005!
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Third Party Payers Chat Transcript Now Available
Not able to join us for the ADA/AGD Event Chat? Read the concerns that your participating colleagues presented and the advice that the experts offered. Download the transcript

News Bites

11/15/04 -The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) recently completed a year-long project and created an oral health Webpage on its site at http://www.cms.hhs.gov/oralhealth/. The site includes information on oral health benefits under Medicaid's EPSDT program, SCHIP, and Medicare. It also links to the new Medicaid resource, Guide to Children's Dental Care in Medicaid.

11/10/04-Dark soda better for teeth
According to J. Anthony von Fraunhofer, MSc, PhD, of the University of Maryland Baltimore Dental School, light colored soda and canned ice teas are worse for the teeth than its darker colored competitors. According to his study, non-cola soft drinks caused two to five times the damage to tooth enamel as darker drinks. Dr. von Fraunhofer believes the cause is the citric acid content in the beverages that can leave heavy drinkers at greater risk for cavities and decay. The average person in the U.S. drinks about 16 ounces of soft drinks daily, according to Dr. von Fraunhofer. The study appeared in the July/August issue of General Dentistry, the peer-reviewed journal of the Academy of General Dentistry.