8 recent ADA updates

From a new leadership appointment to providing guidance on COVID-19, here are eight recent updates from the American Dental Association:

1. The American Dental Association appointed Elizabeth Shapiro, DDS, as chief of governance and strategy management.
2. The ADA offered four possible solutions to improve dental eligibility and benefits verification for dental practices after a study was conducted by Change Healthcare.
3. ADA President Daniel Klemmedson, DDS, MD, sent a letter to Congress supporting a program separate from Medicare that is dedicated to providing dental coverage to low-income Medicare seniors.
4. The dental association answered commonly asked questions about COVID-19 vaccine requirements for dental staff.
5. The ADA and the American Dental Education Association released a report detailing four trends being seen at U.S. dental schools.
6. In July, the ADA urged dental staff to get vaccinated against COVID-19 but said it was not calling for mandated vaccinations because the CDC had not done so.
7. The ADA wrote a letter to CMS asking for changes to credentialing and auditing processes that would encourage more dentists to participate in Medicaid and Medicare services.
8. The Arizona Republic reported July 20 that the ADA ended financial support of Rep. Paul Gosar, DDS, R-Ariz.