Press Release
Embargoed until Monday, July 16, 2001
Contact: Linda S. Orgain, MPH
(770) 488-5301
Mary Kay Sones
(770) 488-6416
CDC Funds Cooperative Agreements to Strengthen State Oral Disease
Prevention Programs
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention today announced that five states and one territory
will receive a total of $1.2 million to strengthen their oral health programs and reduce inequalities in the
oral health of their residents. Included are: Arkansas, Illinois, Michigan, Nevada, New York, and the
Republic of Palau.
"Good oral health is an important part of overall health," said Health and Human Services
Secretary Tommy G. Thompson. "These grants will help these states build more effective preventive
measures to improve oral health and reduce oral disease among their citizens."
These new cooperative agreements range from $60,577 to $300,000 per year and are renewable
for up to five years. For all six, the funding is designed to improve basic state oral health services,
including support for oral health program leadership and additional staff, monitoring oral health behaviors
and status, and evaluating prevention programs. Nevada and Arkansas will receive additional funds to
develop and coordinate community water fluoridation or school-based dental sealant programs.
CDC Awards - Page 2
These new awards were developed in direct response to what state oral health leaders told us they
needed to improve the oral health of their citizenry," states Dr. William R. Maas, director of CDC's oral
health program. "The funds will assist these states to develop oral health plans, establish oral health
coalitions to raise public awareness about the critical importance of good oral health, and implement
monitoring systems to determine whether the states' oral health objectives are being met and to target new
initiatives."
"The new activities in these states will move us closer to building some of the framework noted in
last year's Surgeon General's Report, Oral Health In America, and to reducing and eliminating high rates
of oral disease in children and adults," Maas said.
About 500 million dental visits occur annually in the United States and an estimated $64 million
was spent on dental services in 2000. The CDC oral health program seeks to improve the oral health of
communities by extending the use of proven strategies to prevent oral diseases, enhancing monitoring of
oral diseases, strengthening the nation's oral health capacity, and guiding infection control in dentistry. For
more information on oral health, visit the CDC Web site at: http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/oh/.
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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) protects people's health and safety by
preventing and controlling diseases and injuries; enhances health decisions by providing credible
information on critical health issues; and promotes healthy living through strong partnerships with local,
national and international organizations.
Fact Sheet
Five states and a U.S. Territory have been awarded $1.2 million in cooperative
agreements from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to strengthen
their oral health programs. The following projects are planned:
$
Arkansas will develop an oral health coalition to develop plans to increase access to oral
health services and produce health education materials. Arkansas also received support
to provide training for water plant operators, promote intra-agency cooperation related to
fluoridation of water systems, and develop communications strategies to promote the
benefits of community water fluoridation throughout the state.
$
Illinois will develop a state-wide oral health surveillance system to collect and monitor
data about the oral health of its citizens, employ a Fluoridation Program data manager,
and develop a state-wide oral health education and awareness program. This project
also will provide assistance to the Illinois state oral health coalition that works to improve
the oral health of state residents.
$
Michigan will conduct a baseline assessment and establish an ongoing system to
monitor the oral health of its residents, provide health education on the benefits of
preventive treatment, and prepare a long-range oral health strategy for the state.
$
Nevada will establish a State Office of Oral Health to establish oral health policies, work
with the dental community, recruit dental health professionals, identify and develop
additional resources, and staff a statewide advisory committee. The state also plans to
develop a state oral health plan. Nevada also received funding to implement a schoolbased dental sealant program in 17 school districts.
$
New York will develop a county-specific surveillance system to monitor trends in oral
diseases and use of dental services and establish a statewide coalition to promote
understanding of the importance of oral health and improve the quality of prevention
programs. New York also will provide technical assistance and training to local agencies
on oral health surveillance and to participate in the CDC Water Fluoridation Reporting
System.
$
The Republic of Palau will develop a territorial oral health plan that includes specific
objectives related to the AHealthy Islands Initiative@; develop, pilot test and implement a
state-wide oral health surveillance program that focuses on dental decay in pre-school
children; and implement a comprehensive oral health improvement program for new
mothers and infants to reduce early childhood decay.