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Public Affairs Conference Draws Top Federal Officials
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a sh in g t o n
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PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONFERENCE DRAWS TOP FEDERAL OFFICIALS
sessment of the conference. “To me, the conference basically had three functions— gathering information, educating dentists at the state level, and motivating the PACS to support and elect those candidates who will truly represent not only the profession but the individual dentist as w ell,” he said.
T
he 1982 ADA-ADPAC (American Dental Political Action Committee) conference held March 2-3 in Wash ington, DC, brought together some 200 state and national dental leaders to hear members of Congress, govern ment advisors, and political experts address a range of topics of interest to the dental profession. Highlights of the two-day confer ence include: ■ The disclosure by a top govern ment health official that the Reagan Administration is considering an exemption for dental insurance under its proposed procompetition legisla tion; ■ Predictions for the 1982 House and Senate races by congressional campaign committee chairmen; ■ Advice on political action ac tivities from PAC professionals; and ■ A congressional reception at the US Botanic Garden adjacent to the Capitol. ADA Council on Legislation Chair man James Kerrigan of Washington, DC, predicted a “ripple effect” from the conference. “We had 200 dental leaders in attendance learning about legislative issues on a firsthand basis. With the interest generated from this conference, these 200 leaders will go back to their states, inform their col leagues, and expand the benefits of the conference,” he remarked. ADPAC Chairman H. Franklin M il ler of Memphis, Tenn, added his as
7 9 2 ■ JA D A , V o l. 1 0 4 , M a y 1 9 8 2
D ental exem ption possible
In his speech on “a federal view of competition,” Robert Rubin, MD, HHS assistant secretary for planning and evaluation, praised the dental profes sion for its emphasis on preventive care, observing that traditional dental insurance “has thus far helped you avoid the highly inflationary prob lem s” associated with hospital care. Directing his comments to another concern of the dental profession, Dr. Rubin said the Administration would not seek to preempt state dental prac tice acts. “This is a state rather than a federal function,” he saidFollowing his speech, Dr. Rubin re sponded to a question on procompeti
tion from ADA President-elect Burton Press by saying, “The Administration may well grant an exemption for den tal insurance in its procompetition plan. It is an option we are looking at very carefully.” As Health and Human Services assistant secretary for planning and evaluation, Dr. Rubin has the lead responsibility for drafting the Administration’s procompetition options and arguing the department’s case for procompetition before the President’s Cabinet Council onHuman Resources. He told another questioner, who asked if dentistry would be exempted, that “when it comes to office-based practice . . . we are certainly taking a careful look at not including dentists.” Dr. Rubin told the conference that procompetition legislation is neces sary largely because of rising hospital costs. He was not alone in his assess ment. Sen. David Durenberger (RMinn) told participants that his pro competition bill, S 433, is aimed primarily at physicians and hospitals, adding that if any legislation is
ADA President Robert Griffiths, center, and ADA President-elect Burton Press, right, greet Rep. W illiam “B ill” Patman (D-Tex) during the ADA-ADPAC congressional reception held M arch 2 at the US Botanic Garden.
W A S H IN G T O N
Dr. Jam es P. Kerrigan, left, chairm an of the ADA Council on Legislation and Dr. H. Franklin M iller, ADPAC chairm an, right, discuss the ADA-ADPAC conference with Mrs. M ary Jean Schoessler, A uxiliary representative to the Association and ADPAC.
enacted, it will be done on an “incre mental basis.” “There will be no drastic or pre cipitous policy strokes,” he com mented. “Dentistry is recognized as the most cost-effective health profes sion and has been a leader in such areas as peer review, prevention, and the cost-effective delivery of services,” Senator Durenberger said. In his remarks and during a question-and-answer period, Senator Durenberger said he would not exclude dental insurance from pro competition, but did say “you have special considerations that deserve at tention.”
Senator Kasten said he was particu larly pleased to address the ADAADPAC conference because, like den tists, he considers himself a small businessman. He said he found his way into politics because of govern ment harassment of his family-owned business. Election pred iction s
In addition to key members of Con gress commenting on legislative areas of concern to the dental profession, chairmen of the House and Senate campaign committees gave their views on the upcoming congressional elec tions.
REPO RT
“I am predicting the House of Repre sentatives this November will have an increase of at least ten seats for Democ rats. . . . This election is going to be decided on the basis of the economy.”— Rep. Tony Coelho (DCalif). “We will continue to make gains in the House and will retain control of the Senate. . . . This election is not totally tied to the economy.”— Rep. Guy Vander Jagt (R-Mich). The political prognostications con tinued to fly despite agreement by Senatorial campaign chairmen Robert Packwood (R-Ore) and Wendell Ford (D-Ky) that the Republicans w ill retain their control of the Senate. “The numbers are overwhelmingly against us [in 1 9 8 2 ],” Senator Ford told the dentists. “But I am convinced that if we hold our own, and maybe pick up a seat, we will have set the stage for 1984 when the numbers are on our side for a change with 19 Re publicans up and only 14 Democrat seats in the balance.” “My prediction is that Republicans will pickup three or four seats net; that we will have 57 seats after this elec tion. I don’t think we will lose any of our incumbents,” declared Senator Packwood. He predicted a Republican takeover
FTC: ‘gone too fa r’
Sen. Robert Kasten (R-Wis) told partic ipants that the federal government and the Federal Trade Commission have gone too far in the area of regulation. “I want to rein them in ,” said the chairman of the Senate subcommittee that has jurisdiction over the FTC. Questioning the agency’s role in preempting state laws, he said the states already are doing an adequate job of regulating the professions. “We don’t need double layers of law s,” he remarked. Senator Kasten’s subcommittee held FTC authorization hearings in midMarch. Last year he was successful in efforts to reduce the FTC’s authorizing budget to $68.8 million. The proposed FY 1983 budget is $60.8 million, which represents a 15% reduction from FY 1981. He told conference participants that he supports the exclusion of profes sions from the jurisdiction of the FTC, an exclusion which FTC Chairman James Miller opposes.
Florida Congressmen Claude Pepper (D), second from left, and Don Fuqua (D), right, meet with Flori dians, Dr. Leon Schwartz, second from right, and Mr. Glenn W ilhite, d irector of the Florid a Dental Asso ciation, during the congressional reception. JA D A , V ol. 1 0 4 , M a y 1 9 8 2 ■ 793
Washington Report
of Senate seats now held by Dem ocrats in M aine, New Jersey, V irginia (Inde pendent Harry Byrd), and W est V ir ginia, w h ile Senator Ford listed ten states w here, he said, Dem ocrats have “an average or better than average chance of unseating incum bent R e p u b lican s:” California, Connecticut, Delaw are, Indiana, M innesota, New M exico, Rhode Island, Utah, V erm ont, and W yom ing.
ADPAC Chairman M iller said, “It’s obvious that the 1982 congressional elections could swing either way, giv ing the larger share of success to the Democrats or the Republicans. The fall elections will be an indicator of the acceptance or lack of acceptance by the voters of the Administration’s eco nomic and political philosophies.” A high point of the tw o-day m eeting, according to Dr. M iller, was the panel d iscu ssions on increasing PAC effec tiveness and strategies to im plem ent legislative goals. B ecau se of the “active leadership of
the A D A ,” support has been gathered to lim it the authority of the FTC, one panelist said. “Y o u ’ve done som ething that w ill m aintain professionalism for us a ll,” added another panel m em ber, Mr. John Carson, director of governm ental affairs of the A m erican Podiatry A sso ciation. The four panelists, who spoke on “ increasing PAC effectiveness” and “ strategies to im plem ent legislative g oals,” included Mr. Carson; Mr. Jim Drake, director of congressional rela tions for the A m erican M ed ical A sso ciation; Mr. R ichard A verill, executive director of the A m erican O ptom etric A ssociation; and Mr. Randall M oorehead, director of p o litical re sources for the N ational A ssociation of Realtors. P olitical pred ictions, legislative as sessm ents, and practical advice were not the only areas touched on during the conference. Syndicated colum nist and self-proclaim ed “ p o litical con ser vative” Patrick Buchanan told dentists that “the R epublican party should be the party of the sm aller entrepreneur ial b u sin essm en .” Mr. B u chanan de fended President R eagan’s budget cuts and his foreign policy, pred icting an upsw ing in econ om ic growth and a lessening of tensions w orldw ide. Dr. Kerrigan sum med up the twoday event by saying, “I th in k this con ference presented [an opportunity] for dialogue betw een leaders of the pro
ANECDOTES O gden Nash wrote: God in His w isdom m ade the fly And then forgot to tell us why. Martha S. N elson of M cK eesport, Pa, w rites the dental equivalent: God in His w isdom gave us plaque And then declined to take it back.
7 9 4 ■ JA D A , V o l. 1 0 4 , M ay 1 9 8 2
HHS Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation, Robert Rubin, MD, left, is shown with Rep. Guy Vander Jagt (R-M ich). Dr. Rubin told participants at the ADA-ADPAC Public Af fairs C onference that the Adm inistration would consider excluding dental insurance from its procom petition legislation.
fession and our elected representa tives. T h is pu blic dialogue not only in forms the profession of the thinking of those officials, it also d irectly im presses upon those officials the inter ests and concerns of the p ro fession.” This report was prepared by Nanci E. Langley, staff writer, ADA Washington Office.
a sh in g t o n
R
(J $
eport
PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONFERENCE DRAWS TOP FEDERAL OFFICIALS
sessment of the conference. “To me, the conference basically had three functions— gathering information, educating dentists at the state level, and motivating the PACS to support and elect those candidates who will truly represent not only the profession but the individual dentist as w ell,” he said.
T
he 1982 ADA-ADPAC (American Dental Political Action Committee) conference held March 2-3 in Wash ington, DC, brought together some 200 state and national dental leaders to hear members of Congress, govern ment advisors, and political experts address a range of topics of interest to the dental profession. Highlights of the two-day confer ence include: ■ The disclosure by a top govern ment health official that the Reagan Administration is considering an exemption for dental insurance under its proposed procompetition legisla tion; ■ Predictions for the 1982 House and Senate races by congressional campaign committee chairmen; ■ Advice on political action ac tivities from PAC professionals; and ■ A congressional reception at the US Botanic Garden adjacent to the Capitol. ADA Council on Legislation Chair man James Kerrigan of Washington, DC, predicted a “ripple effect” from the conference. “We had 200 dental leaders in attendance learning about legislative issues on a firsthand basis. With the interest generated from this conference, these 200 leaders will go back to their states, inform their col leagues, and expand the benefits of the conference,” he remarked. ADPAC Chairman H. Franklin M il ler of Memphis, Tenn, added his as
7 9 2 ■ JA D A , V o l. 1 0 4 , M a y 1 9 8 2
D ental exem ption possible
In his speech on “a federal view of competition,” Robert Rubin, MD, HHS assistant secretary for planning and evaluation, praised the dental profes sion for its emphasis on preventive care, observing that traditional dental insurance “has thus far helped you avoid the highly inflationary prob lem s” associated with hospital care. Directing his comments to another concern of the dental profession, Dr. Rubin said the Administration would not seek to preempt state dental prac tice acts. “This is a state rather than a federal function,” he saidFollowing his speech, Dr. Rubin re sponded to a question on procompeti
tion from ADA President-elect Burton Press by saying, “The Administration may well grant an exemption for den tal insurance in its procompetition plan. It is an option we are looking at very carefully.” As Health and Human Services assistant secretary for planning and evaluation, Dr. Rubin has the lead responsibility for drafting the Administration’s procompetition options and arguing the department’s case for procompetition before the President’s Cabinet Council onHuman Resources. He told another questioner, who asked if dentistry would be exempted, that “when it comes to office-based practice . . . we are certainly taking a careful look at not including dentists.” Dr. Rubin told the conference that procompetition legislation is neces sary largely because of rising hospital costs. He was not alone in his assess ment. Sen. David Durenberger (RMinn) told participants that his pro competition bill, S 433, is aimed primarily at physicians and hospitals, adding that if any legislation is
ADA President Robert Griffiths, center, and ADA President-elect Burton Press, right, greet Rep. W illiam “B ill” Patman (D-Tex) during the ADA-ADPAC congressional reception held M arch 2 at the US Botanic Garden.
W A S H IN G T O N
Dr. Jam es P. Kerrigan, left, chairm an of the ADA Council on Legislation and Dr. H. Franklin M iller, ADPAC chairm an, right, discuss the ADA-ADPAC conference with Mrs. M ary Jean Schoessler, A uxiliary representative to the Association and ADPAC.
enacted, it will be done on an “incre mental basis.” “There will be no drastic or pre cipitous policy strokes,” he com mented. “Dentistry is recognized as the most cost-effective health profes sion and has been a leader in such areas as peer review, prevention, and the cost-effective delivery of services,” Senator Durenberger said. In his remarks and during a question-and-answer period, Senator Durenberger said he would not exclude dental insurance from pro competition, but did say “you have special considerations that deserve at tention.”
Senator Kasten said he was particu larly pleased to address the ADAADPAC conference because, like den tists, he considers himself a small businessman. He said he found his way into politics because of govern ment harassment of his family-owned business. Election pred iction s
In addition to key members of Con gress commenting on legislative areas of concern to the dental profession, chairmen of the House and Senate campaign committees gave their views on the upcoming congressional elec tions.
REPO RT
“I am predicting the House of Repre sentatives this November will have an increase of at least ten seats for Democ rats. . . . This election is going to be decided on the basis of the economy.”— Rep. Tony Coelho (DCalif). “We will continue to make gains in the House and will retain control of the Senate. . . . This election is not totally tied to the economy.”— Rep. Guy Vander Jagt (R-Mich). The political prognostications con tinued to fly despite agreement by Senatorial campaign chairmen Robert Packwood (R-Ore) and Wendell Ford (D-Ky) that the Republicans w ill retain their control of the Senate. “The numbers are overwhelmingly against us [in 1 9 8 2 ],” Senator Ford told the dentists. “But I am convinced that if we hold our own, and maybe pick up a seat, we will have set the stage for 1984 when the numbers are on our side for a change with 19 Re publicans up and only 14 Democrat seats in the balance.” “My prediction is that Republicans will pickup three or four seats net; that we will have 57 seats after this elec tion. I don’t think we will lose any of our incumbents,” declared Senator Packwood. He predicted a Republican takeover
FTC: ‘gone too fa r’
Sen. Robert Kasten (R-Wis) told partic ipants that the federal government and the Federal Trade Commission have gone too far in the area of regulation. “I want to rein them in ,” said the chairman of the Senate subcommittee that has jurisdiction over the FTC. Questioning the agency’s role in preempting state laws, he said the states already are doing an adequate job of regulating the professions. “We don’t need double layers of law s,” he remarked. Senator Kasten’s subcommittee held FTC authorization hearings in midMarch. Last year he was successful in efforts to reduce the FTC’s authorizing budget to $68.8 million. The proposed FY 1983 budget is $60.8 million, which represents a 15% reduction from FY 1981. He told conference participants that he supports the exclusion of profes sions from the jurisdiction of the FTC, an exclusion which FTC Chairman James Miller opposes.
Florida Congressmen Claude Pepper (D), second from left, and Don Fuqua (D), right, meet with Flori dians, Dr. Leon Schwartz, second from right, and Mr. Glenn W ilhite, d irector of the Florid a Dental Asso ciation, during the congressional reception. JA D A , V ol. 1 0 4 , M a y 1 9 8 2 ■ 793
Washington Report
of Senate seats now held by Dem ocrats in M aine, New Jersey, V irginia (Inde pendent Harry Byrd), and W est V ir ginia, w h ile Senator Ford listed ten states w here, he said, Dem ocrats have “an average or better than average chance of unseating incum bent R e p u b lican s:” California, Connecticut, Delaw are, Indiana, M innesota, New M exico, Rhode Island, Utah, V erm ont, and W yom ing.
ADPAC Chairman M iller said, “It’s obvious that the 1982 congressional elections could swing either way, giv ing the larger share of success to the Democrats or the Republicans. The fall elections will be an indicator of the acceptance or lack of acceptance by the voters of the Administration’s eco nomic and political philosophies.” A high point of the tw o-day m eeting, according to Dr. M iller, was the panel d iscu ssions on increasing PAC effec tiveness and strategies to im plem ent legislative goals. B ecau se of the “active leadership of
the A D A ,” support has been gathered to lim it the authority of the FTC, one panelist said. “Y o u ’ve done som ething that w ill m aintain professionalism for us a ll,” added another panel m em ber, Mr. John Carson, director of governm ental affairs of the A m erican Podiatry A sso ciation. The four panelists, who spoke on “ increasing PAC effectiveness” and “ strategies to im plem ent legislative g oals,” included Mr. Carson; Mr. Jim Drake, director of congressional rela tions for the A m erican M ed ical A sso ciation; Mr. R ichard A verill, executive director of the A m erican O ptom etric A ssociation; and Mr. Randall M oorehead, director of p o litical re sources for the N ational A ssociation of Realtors. P olitical pred ictions, legislative as sessm ents, and practical advice were not the only areas touched on during the conference. Syndicated colum nist and self-proclaim ed “ p o litical con ser vative” Patrick Buchanan told dentists that “the R epublican party should be the party of the sm aller entrepreneur ial b u sin essm en .” Mr. B u chanan de fended President R eagan’s budget cuts and his foreign policy, pred icting an upsw ing in econ om ic growth and a lessening of tensions w orldw ide. Dr. Kerrigan sum med up the twoday event by saying, “I th in k this con ference presented [an opportunity] for dialogue betw een leaders of the pro
ANECDOTES O gden Nash wrote: God in His w isdom m ade the fly And then forgot to tell us why. Martha S. N elson of M cK eesport, Pa, w rites the dental equivalent: God in His w isdom gave us plaque And then declined to take it back.
7 9 4 ■ JA D A , V o l. 1 0 4 , M ay 1 9 8 2
HHS Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation, Robert Rubin, MD, left, is shown with Rep. Guy Vander Jagt (R-M ich). Dr. Rubin told participants at the ADA-ADPAC Public Af fairs C onference that the Adm inistration would consider excluding dental insurance from its procom petition legislation.
fession and our elected representa tives. T h is pu blic dialogue not only in forms the profession of the thinking of those officials, it also d irectly im presses upon those officials the inter ests and concerns of the p ro fession.” This report was prepared by Nanci E. Langley, staff writer, ADA Washington Office.