NADP On The Move in 2021

As the representative and recognized voice of the dental benefits industry, NADP advanced your positions among key stakeholders and the media throughout 2021. Following are highlights:

Meetings

ADA CMC

From March 11-12, NADP Codes Sub-WorkGroup Chair Dr. Charles Stewart, Aetna; Vice Chair Kristin Strasheim, Ameritas; and Deputy Executive Director Timothy L. Brown represented the dental benefits industry during the American Dental Association’s virtual Code Maintenance Committee meeting.

ADSO

NADP Dental Informatic Manager Brian Flynn served as the voice of the dental benefits industry during the Association of Dental Support Organization (ADSO) Virtual Conference March 24-25.

Advocacy in Action

NADP members served as the voice of the dental benefits industry in virtual meetings with federal legislators and staff during virtual Advocacy in Action April 27-29.

DQA

Drs. Mark Jurkovich, HealthPartners, and Lynn Mouden plus NADP Deputy Executive Director Timothy L. Brown represented NADP at the June 18 Dental Quality Alliance (DQA) virtual meeting and at the DQA Executive Committee meeting on June 17. DQA develops performance measures for oral health care. The DQA Measure Sets include Medicaid and Dental Plan Assessments, evaluating utilization, quality of care, and cost.

GUAA

NADP Commission on Advocacy Chair Theresa McConeghey, Principal; and Executive Director Eme Augustini promoted the dental benefits industry in presentations at the Group Underwriters Association of America (GUAA) Virtual Annual Conference May 24-25.

HL 7

Dental Informatics Manager Brian Flynn represented the dental benefits industry during the virtual Health Level 7 International (HL &) Virtual Working Group Meeting May 24-28. HL 7 is an ANSI-accredited standards development organization.

Maryland Oral Health Task Force

Director of Regulatory and Legislative Affairs at United Concordia Dental, Bernard LaPine, NADP Executive Director Eme Augustini and Matt Celentano, Maryland Dental Alliance, presented at the Nov. 18 Maryland Oral Health Task Force meeting. The Oral Health Task Force, created by the Maryland General Assembly, will study and analyze the current landscape of oral health services in the State and make recommendations to improve access to services, especially for our most vulnerable citizens.

SKYGEN

In October NADP Director of Research and Information Jerry Berggren and Dental Informatics Manager Brian Flynn represented the dental benefits industry at the recent SKYGEN meeting in Phoenix, Arizona. Berggren presented at the meeting.

SNOMED

Deputy Executive Director Timothy L. Brown represented the dental benefits industry during the SNOMED Virtual Conference April 19-22. SNOMED International is a not-for-profit organization that owns, administers and develops SNOMED CT, the world’s most comprehensive clinical terminology.

X12

At the virtual X12 Summer 2021 Standing Meeting, NADP Informatics Manager Brian Flynn served as the voice of the dental benefits industry. Meeting highlights included detailed discussions around a newly developing provider enrollment standard for EDI transactions and provider directory standard.

Media

AARP – NADP provided background information about seniors without dental coverage to writer/editor Michelle Crouch.

Inside Health Policy:  NADP Executive Director Eme Augustini provided background information to

  • Overarching Trends Affecting Dental and Dental Benefits and Future Risks to Dental Benefits - Theresa McConeghey and Eme Augusini (5/24)
  • Impact of the Legislative & Regulatory Environment on the Dental Industry - Theresa McConeghey and Eme Augusini (5/25)

NADP On The Move in 2020 RECAP

As the representative and recognized voice of the dental benefits industry, NADP advanced your positions among key stakeholders and the media throughout the year. The association also celebrated a key milestone.

Meetings (Live, Virtual and Conference Calls)

ADA Annual Conference

Deputy Executive Director Timothy L. Brown represented members during the American Dental Association (ADA) Annual Conference held virtually Oct. 15-18.

ADA CMC

Dr. Charles D. Stewart, Aetna, Ms. Strasheim, Ameritas Life Insurance Corp., and NADP Deputy Executive Director Timothy L. Brown represented the dental benefits industry at the March 11-13 ADA Code Maintenance Committee meeting in Chicago. Attendees reviewed submissions for CDT 2021 revisions. In April, NADP Deputy Executive Director Timothy L. Brown represented the dental benefits industry during an emergency ADA CMC conference call to adopt two 2021 CDT Codes for coronavirus testing. The CMC voted unanimously to add the two codes.

ADA Health Policy Institute Roundtable

Serving as the voice of the dental benefits industry, NADP Executive Director Eme Augustini was a panelist on the Nov. 18 ADA Health Policy Institute industry roundtable. The topic for the roundtable discussions was “Will Patient Volume Decline in the Coming Months?”

ADA SCDI

NADP served as the voice of the dental benefits industry during three meetings of the ADA Standards Committee on Dental Informatics (SCDI), which develops information processing standards and technical reports to assist the dental profession with hardware and software selection, digital photography, interoperability, data security and more. Meetings included:

  • Feb. 17-19 in Chicago, attended by NADP Dental Informatics Manager Brian Flynn and Deputy Executive Director Timothy L. Brown
  • Oct. 14, virtual, attended by NADP Dental Informatics Manager Brian Flynn
  • Nov. 10, virtual, attended by NADP Dental Informatics Manager Brian Flynn

CADP

Director of Government Relations Teresa Cagnolatti and Director of Research Jerry Berggren represented NADP members during the California Association of Dental Plan Annual Conference + Capitol Day, Feb. 25-27 in Sacramento, California.

Dental Quality Alliance

Drs. Mark Jurkovich, HealthPartners; Lynn Mouden, Guardian; and NADP Deputy Executive Director Timothy L. Brown represented our members during the Dental Quality Alliance (DQA) live, virtual meeting on Nov. 13. The mission of the DQA is to advance performance measurement to improve oral health, patient care, and safety through a consensus-building process.

HL7

NADP Dental Informatics Manager Brian Flynn served as the voice of the dental benefits industry at the HL7 meeting, Feb. 2-7 in Sydney, Australia.

NCOIL

At the February hearing of the National Conference of Insurance Legislators’ Health Committee, NADP Executive Director Eme Augustini voiced the dental benefits industry’s opposition to a model act proposed by the American Dental Association.

Oral Health System: Pandemic Response, Virtual Meeting

NADP Executive Director Eme Augustini offered insights and perspectives regarding stabilizing the oral health care system during the April 8 Virtual Meeting hosted by DentaQuest. Participants included a cross-section of groups comprising the oral health care system: providers, payors, plus philanthropic, public and government organizations.

X12

Dental Informatics Manager Brian Flynn served as the voice of the dental benefits industry at the winter and fall X12 Standing Meetings, which were held Jan. 25-Feb. 5, and Oct. 4-14 (virtual) respectively. Chartered by the American National Standards Institute, X12 develops and maintains electronic data interchange standards which drive business processes globally.

Media

AIA Press Release – The NADP press release, “NADP Members Advocate for Consumer Access to Dental Coverage in Public and Private Markets via Virtual Congressional Visits” appeared in numerous media outlets including the Washington Post, USA Today, MarketWatch plus AP and Reuters wire services.

Insurance.com – Reporter Susan Manning interviewed NADP Executive Director Eme Augustini about the fundamentals of dental coverage. NADP also provided information from The Industry Overview, located on WhyDental.org.

NADP Video – Executive Director Eme Augustini’s video message highlighted the association’s response to the pandemic and assured members NADP will continue to provide core services. This video message was also posted in Dental Interact and shared on social media.

New York Times –Reporter Sarah Kliff interviewed Executive Director Eme Augustini Oct. 27 regarding new charges resulting from the pandemic, such as personal protective equipment.

Periospectives Magazine – Freelancer John Pohl interviewed NADP Executive Director Eme Augustini about the future of dental insurance for Periospectives Magazine, the American Academy of Periodontology's membership publication. The interview covered the most important trends in periodontal insurance over the past few years and what to expect in the future regarding both periodontal and dental insurance.

Milestone

NADP SmartBrief

The NADP SmartBrief weekly e-newsletter celebrated its 10-year anniversary June 17. The NADP SmartBrief gathers top industry news from leading media outlets for multiple stakeholder audiences comprising a subscriber list exceeding 2,700 contacts.