I 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 539 

To amend part B of title III of the Public Health Service Act to improve 

essential oral health care for lower income individuals by breaking down 

barriers to care, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JANUARY 27, 2015 

Ms. KELLY of Illinois (for herself and Mr. SIMPSON) introduced the following 

bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce 

A BILL 

To amend part B of title III of the Public Health Service 

Act to improve essential oral health care for lower income 

individuals by breaking down barriers to care, and for 

other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Action for Dental 

5 Health Act of 2015’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds the following: 


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1 (1) More than 181 million Americans will not 

2 visit a dentist even though nearly half of people over 

3 30 suffer from some form of gum disease and nearly 

4 one in four children under the age of five already 

5 have cavities. 

6 (2) Many volunteer dental projects sponsored 

7 by national, State, and local dental societies provide 

8 free care now to those most in need. Annually, den9 tists deliver an estimated $2.6 billion in free and dis10 counted care according to the America’s Dentists 

11 Care Foundation. 

12 (3) It is estimated that emergency department 

13 (ED) charges for dental complaints totaled up to 

14 $2.1 billion in 2010. Nearly 80 percent of the dental 

15 emergency room visits were nonurgent and could 

16 have been seen in a dental office. Shifting those ED 

17 visits to a dental office translates into potential cost 

18 savings of up to $1.7 billion a year and offers the 

19 possibility of establishing a ‘‘dental home’’ for these 

20 individuals. 

21 (4) Seniors, especially those in nursing homes 

22 and long-term care facilities, often have special den23 tal needs and complicated medical histories that re24 quire consultation between dentists and fellow medVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:49 Feb 02, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H539.IH H539

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1 ical professionals in providing an interdisciplinary 

2 approach to their overall health needs. 

3 SEC. 3. VOLUNTEER DENTAL PROJECTS AND ACTION FOR 

4 DENTAL HEALTH PROGRAM. 

5 Part B of title III of the Public Health Service Act 

6 is revised by amending section 317M (42 U.S.C. 247b– 

7 14) as follows: 

8 (1) by redesignating subsections (e) and (f) as 

9 (g) and (h), respectively; 

10 (2) by inserting after subsection (d), the fol11 lowing: 

12 ‘‘(e) GRANTS TO SUPPORT VOLUNTEER DENTAL

13 PROJECTS.— 

14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, acting 

15 through the Director of the Centers for Disease 

16 Control and Prevention, may award grants to or 

17 enter into contracts with eligible entities to obtain 

18 portable or mobile dental equipment, and pay for ap19 propriate operational costs, for the provision of free 

20 dental services to underserved populations that are 

21 delivered in a manner consistent with State licensing 

22 laws. 

23 ‘‘(2) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—In this subsection, the 

24 term ‘eligible entity’ includes a State or local dental 

25 association, a State oral health program, a dental 


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1 education, dental hygiene education, or postdoctoral 

2 dental education program accredited by the Commis3 sion on Dental Accreditation, and a community4 based organization that partners with an academic 

5 institution, that— 

6 ‘‘(A) is exempt from tax under section 

7 501(c) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986; 

8 and 

9 ‘‘(B) offers a free dental services program 

10 for underserved populations. 

11 ‘‘(f) ACTION FOR DENTAL HEALTH PROGRAM.— 

12 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, acting 

13 through the Director of the Centers for Disease 

14 Control and Prevention, may award grants to or 

15 enter into contracts with eligible entities to collabo16 rate with State, county, or local public officials and 

17 other stakeholders to develop and implement initia18 tives to accomplish any of the following goals: 

19 ‘‘(A) To improve oral health education and 

20 dental disease prevention, including community21 wide prevention programs, use of dental 

22 sealants and fluoride varnish, and increasing 

23 oral health literacy. 

24 ‘‘(B) To make the health care delivery sys25 tem providing dental services more accessible 


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1 and efficient through the development and ex2 pansion of outreach programs that will facili3 tate the establishment of dental homes for chil4 dren and adults, including the aged, blind, and 

5 disabled populations. 

6 ‘‘(C) To reduce geographic, language, cul7 tural, and similar barriers in the provision of 

8 dental services. 

9 ‘‘(D) To help reduce the use of emergency 

10 departments by those who seek dental services 

11 more appropriately delivered in a dental pri12 mary care setting. 

13 ‘‘(E) To facilitate the provision of dental 

14 care to nursing home residents who are dis15 proportionately affected by lack of care. 

16 ‘‘(2) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—In this subsection, the 

17 term ‘eligible entity’ includes a State or local dental 

18 association, a State oral health program, or a dental 

19 education, dental hygiene, or postdoctoral dental 

20 education program accredited by the Commission on 

21 Dental Accreditation, and a community-based orga22 nization that partners with an academic institution, 

23 that— 


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1 ‘‘(A) is exempt from tax under section 

2 501(c) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986; 

3 and 

4 ‘‘(B) partners with public and private 

5 stakeholders to facilitate the provision of dental 

6 services for underserved populations.’’; and 

7 (3) in subsection (h), as redesignated by para8 graph (1), by striking ‘‘fiscal years 2001 through 

9 2005’’ and inserting ‘‘fiscal years 2016 through 

10 2020’’. 

Æ 


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