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American Dental Education Association

Volume 2, No. 64, July 27, 2022

Biden Extends Public Health Emergency Until October 2022
 
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, President Biden extended [ [link removed] ] the Public Health Emergency (PHE) designation, effective July 15. This most recent PHE ends on Oct. 13. PHE declarations must be reviewed and renewed every 90 days to determine if the emergency still exists, and a reason for the extension must be given [ [link removed] ] . The reason cited for the current extension was the uptick in coronavirus infections and deaths caused by the Omicron BA.5 subvariant, the most easily transmissible subvariant thus far.
The PHE extension allows the continuance of free COVID testing, treatments and vaccines. Federal matching funds and correspondingly, the continuous enrollment of Medicaid beneficiaries, would also continue as would many of the telehealth rules temporarily put in place during the pandemic.
 
The PHE declaration began in January 2022, was extended throughout the Trump administration and has been in effect throughout the Biden administration.

Federal District Court Judge Blocks ED’s Title IX Guidance Protecting Transgender Students
 
A federal district court judge in the Eastern District of Tennessee issued a preliminary injunction [ [link removed] ] on the Biden administration’s June 2021 Notice of Interpretation for Title IX, which extended Title IX protection to LGBTQ+ students. The case was brought by Attorneys General representing the following 20 states: Tennessee, Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota and West Virginia.
 
The Biden administration has codified language from the Notice of Interpretation in its Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) for Title IX.
 
The Attorneys General argued that the guidance put states in the position of having to violate their states’ laws or face significant harm through the loss of federal funds if their states did not abide by the Department of Education’s (ED) Title IX guidance. State law in the plaintiffs’ states forbids the acknowledgement of LGBTQ+ students and, in some cases, places restrictions on them, such as prohibiting them from playing on sports teams. The plaintiffs asserted that being put in this position violates the U.S. Constitution’s Tenth Amendment. They also accused ED of violating the Administrative Procedure Act, by not using the rulemaking process to extend Title IX protection to LQBTQ+ students, and of violating the First Amendment by requiring schools to use the chosen pronouns of students.
 
Judge Charles Atchley sided with the Attorneys General. His order found that ED’s guidance “directly interferes with and threatens Plaintiff States’ ability to continue enforcing their state laws.” He went onto state in his judgement that the guidance ignores the “limited reach of Bostock,” which only extends Title VII protection based on sexual orientation or gender identity to employment.
 
The court’s preliminary injunction is applicable in only the 20 states who are plaintiffs in the case.

Biden Administration Requests Significant Changes to Tennessee Block Grant Proposal
 
On June 30, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services sent a letter [ [link removed] ] to Tennessee officially requesting the state make changes to its Medicaid block grant proposal. The original proposal was approved [ [link removed] ] in the waning days of the Trump administration, and would have shifted Medicaid funding in Tennessee from an open-ended arrangement [ [link removed] ] under which the federal government pays a percentage of the state’s Medicaid costs based on per-capita income, to an arrangement where the federal government provides a fixed amount of funding annually.
 
While state officials contend the block grant would allow the state to save money and potentially offer more services, critics have contended the funding structure would lead to a reduction in services for Medicaid enrollees. While the letter outlined several requested changes [ [link removed] ] , the biggest change was that the state submit a new financing model “based on a traditional per member per month cap instead of an aggregate cap”.

Delaware Bill Would Create Task Force to Address Dental Care Access for Underserved Communities, Licensure and Other Issues
 
In late June, the Delaware General Assembly sent a bill to Gov. John Carney (D) that would create Dental Care Access Task Force. The Task Force would consist of designated stakeholders and would be required to examine:
 • Dental care access, including for underserved populations and communities,
 • Dental licensure practices and requirements,
 • Dental provider type and scope of practice,
 • Dental provider recruitment and retention strategies and
 • Dental insurance networks and coverage, including for the uninsured and underinsured.

The Task Force would be required to submit its report no later than Feb. 1, 2023.
 
Additionally, the bill increases licensure portability for dentists who apply for a community health license to care for underserved populations. These licenses require the individuals who hold them to work in a Federally Qualified Health Center or government-operated dental clinic. The bill would allow an individual to obtain a community health license by passing a nationally recognized regional board exam, rather than the Delaware Practical Board Exam, and would also create a pathway to full licensure.

ADEA Advocacy in Action
This appears weekly in the ADEA Advocate to summarize and provide direct links to recent advocacy actions taken by ADEA. Please let us know what you think and how we might improve its usefulness.
 
Issues and Resources
 • ADEA memo [ [link removed] ] regarding vaccines at the state level
 • ADEA report [ [link removed] ] on teledentistry
 • ADEA report [ [link removed] ] on the Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on U.S. Dental Schools
 • ADEA policy brief [ [link removed] ] regarding overprescription of antibiotics
 • For a full list of ADEA memos, briefs and letters click here [ [link removed] ] .

ADEA U.S. Interactive Legislative and Regulatory Tracking Map [ [link removed] ]

Key Federal Issues [ [link removed] ]

Key State Issues [ [link removed] ]

The ADEA Advocate [ [link removed] ] is published weekly. Its purpose is to keep ADEA members abreast of federal and state issues and events of interest to the academic dentistry and the dental and research communities.
 
©2022
American Dental Education Association
655 K Street, NW, Suite 800
Washington, DC 20001
Tel: 202-289-7201
Website: www.adea.org [ [link removed] ]

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B. Timothy Leeth, CPA
ADEA Chief Advocacy Officer
 
Bridgette DeHart, J.D.
ADEA Director of Federal Relations and Advocacy
 
Phillip Mauller, M.P.S.
ADEA Director of State Relations and Advocacy
 
Brian Robinson
ADEA Program Manager for Advocacy and Government Relations
 
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