ADA President John Findley, D.D.S., recently asked a U.S. House of Representatives subcommittee to increase funding for the Indian Health Service (IHS) program by $1 million.
Dr. Findley told the subcommittee that the IHS dental workforce is already understaffed and that nearly 65% of the agency's dental specialists are eligible for retirement this year.
He said the funds are needed to train new specialists.
"Approximately 79% of Indian children 2 to 5 years old have dental decay -- a level that far exceeds other ethnic groups," Dr. Findley said in a press release. "The ADA would like to see this eradicated, and within five years see that every Native American child is caries-free."
Dr. Findley concluded his testimony before the subcommittee by stating that the ADA is committed to working with Congress and the IHS "to aggressively reduce the disparity of oral disease and care that currently exists in Indian Country."
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