ODA continues to work on members’ behalf during COVID-19 pandemic
The Ohio Dental Association has been working on your behalf throughout the coronavirus pandemic. We know this is a difficult time for you and your practice. We place a high priority on providing accurate, trusted information to you and advocating on your behalf with state leaders as well as insurance companies.
Last month, we shared a list of things we’ve been doing for you during the pandemic. Here are some additional highlights:
- We hosted two free CE courses with information about infection control, PPE and other resources related to opening your dental practice.
- We sent a letter to the Ohio House of Representatives’ newly created 2020 Economic Recovery Task Force urging them to allow dental offices to reopen as soon as possible.
- We worked with the governor’s office and the Ohio State Dental Board to put a framework together about how to safely reopen dental practices. We reconvened a Task Force that had been dealing with COVID-19 issues to develop a framework for restoring oral health services in Ohio.
- We have been closely tracking information about the PPE dental offices need and we worked with suppliers to secure that PPE for our members.
- We endorsed ROE Dental for face shields and obtained a 10% discount for ODA members.
- We worked with dental insurance companies and third-party payers asking them to cover cellphone triage and interim therapeutic restorations during the pandemic. We have also asked them to address reimbursement levels and the increased cost of care.
- We have contacted OSHA to receive details on regulatory compliance issues for dental offices during the COVID-19 pandemic.
- We’ve been sending out informative email updates on a regular basis and staff have personally responded to over 1,000 member questions via phone and email.
- Along with the American Dental Association and a coalition of more than 85 dental organizations, we urged Congress to authorize additional resources to support dental offices during the current coronavirus pandemic crisis.
- We have provided resources for dentists to utilize during downtime with offices closed, including ODA Annual Session Sneak Peek CE courses, free to ODA members.
- We are advocating for the Ohio Department of Medicaid and the HMOs to not take any actions that would adversely impact any aspect of Medicaid’s dental program in light of announced budget cuts.
The ODA will continue to work on members’ behalf throughout the rest of this pandemic and into the future. For resources and information about coronavirus for dental offices in Ohio, visit https://www.oda.org/member-center/resources/covid-19/.