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American Dental Education Association
Volume 2, No. 58, June 14, 2022
CDC Removes Advice to Wear a Mask for Protection Against Monkeypox
Last week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued traveler recommendations which suggested that the monkeypox virus can occasionally be aerosolized. The recommendation [ [link removed] ] specifically stated, “Wear a mask. Wearing a mask can help protect you from many diseases, including monkeypox.” However, in a reversal on June 6, the CDC removed [ [link removed] ] that recommendation from their website.
The release of the recommendation raised questions [ [link removed] ] regarding possible airborne transmission of monkeypox. Scientists pushed back [ [link removed] ] saying that monkeypox transmission is primarily spread through direct contact with an infected person and rarely transmitted through the air.
The CDC removed the mask recommendation from the monkeypox travel health notice because it caused confusion, according to a CDC spokesperson [ [link removed] ] .
In May, initial reports of an outbreak began in Europe. Over 31 countries have since reported cases of monkeypox, with the United States recording [ [link removed] ] 45 cases in 12 states and the District of Columbia as of June 9.
The CDC also raised the monkeypox alert level to Alert Level 2: Practice Enhanced Precautions.
FDA Advisory Committee Approves Novavax’s Coronavirus Vaccine
The Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee (VRBPAC) advised the FDA to authorize the Novavax vaccine for Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) to treat coronavirus. Studies [ [link removed] ] show that the vaccine has a 90% efficacy in protecting people against mild, moderate and severe disease.
VRBPAC’s 21-0 vote had one abstention. Bruce Gellin, M.D., M.P.H., Chief of Global Public Health Strategy at The Rockefeller Foundation, abstained [ [link removed] ] because the vaccine was not tested against the Omicron variant, the current dominant variant, and it was uncertain how long the protection from the vaccine lasts.
The other FDA-approved coronavirus vaccines were developed using messenger RNA. However, the Novavax vaccine is protein-based and uses vaccine development technology that is traditionally used to develop vaccines. It is hoped that because of the mechanism used to develop the vaccine, those who remain unvaccinated will be more likely to get vaccinated as they may have more confidence in the vaccine’s safety.
But the Novavax vaccine has run into manufacturing issues [ [link removed] ] , and it not likely to get the full FDA approval until the FDA reviews its manufacturing processes.
CDC Lifts Required Negative COVID-19 Test Prior to Entering the U.S.
As of midnight, on Sunday June 12 a negative COVID-19 test is no longer required before boarding a flight to the United States. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention made the announcement [ [link removed] ] on Friday that the requirement would be lifted. CDC stated that the pandemic has entered a new phase in which vaccines and antiviral therapeutics are widely available and have contributed to a lower risk of infection. It did however encourage foreign travelers to get tested as close to the travel date as possible and to not board a flight if they are sick. CDC said that it continues to evaluate the latest science and state of the pandemic and will reassess the need for a testing requirement if the situation changes.
Licensure Portability Bills Move Forward in Ohio and Louisiana
Licensure portability has been a trending issue in state legislatures over the last several years, and recently Ohio and Louisiana took steps toward increasing licensure portability in their states.
The Ohio State House of Representatives passed a bill [ [link removed] ] that would increase licensure portability in the state. If signed into law, the bill would require licensing authorities to issue a license to anyone who has held a license in good standing from another jurisdiction for at least one year. A similar bill has also passed the State Senate [ [link removed] ] , but in addition to also holding a license for at least on year, an applicant would also be required to have been actively practicing for at least one of the five years immediately preceding the application date, unless a licensing board chooses to waive the requirement.
In Louisiana, the Senate passed legislation [ [link removed] ] that would require a state licensing board to issue a license to anyone who has held a license in good standing from another jurisdiction for at least one year, provided that an applicant has passed an examination or met education, training or experience standards.
Similar laws have recently been signed or implemented in Arizona [ [link removed] ] , Iowa [ [link removed] ] , Kansas [ [link removed] ] , Mississippi [ [link removed] ] , Missouri [ [link removed] ] , New Mexico [ [link removed] ] , Oklahoma [ [link removed] ] and West Virginia [ [link removed] ] .
Colorado Gov. Signs Bills to Expand Preceptor Tax Credit and Implement Rural Health Workforce Initiative
Colorado Gov. Jared Polis (D) recently signed two bills that could benefit oral health care workers.
SB 172 [ [link removed] ] will establish the Colorado Rural Health-care Workforce Initiative to expand the number of health care professionals practicing in rural or frontier counties. Under the bill, institutions of higher education would be authorized to establish and operate a health care professionals rural track within any health care professional education program offered by the institution. Rural tracks would be required to set aside seats for students who express an interest in studying and working in a rural or frontier county, and these institutions would be required to award scholarships to students in the rural track. In order to receive a scholarship, a student must commit to working as a health care professional in a rural or frontier county for two years after completing education and training.
HB 1005 [ [link removed] ] would expand the state’s preceptor tax credit. Under current law, certain health care professionals, including dentists who work in a rural or frontier areas, are eligible for a tax credit up to $1,000, when providing an uncompensated preceptorship that meets specified requirements. Once implemented, the new law will:
• Make dental hygienists eligible for the tax credit,
• Expand the number of eligible practitioners from 200 to 300,
• Extend the period for which the tax credit may be claimed from 2023 to 2033 and
• Expand who may participate in a preceptorship to include individuals matriculating at any accredited Colorado institution of higher education, who are seeking a degree or certification in a primary health care field.
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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