It is interesting that, with 90 percent of the 3,588 ADA members surveyed responding that their second most critical issue was "receiving fair reimbursement for dental services I provide" ("ADA Members Weigh in on Critical Issues" January JADA), the ADA still will not publicly address the inequality of the federal government-mandated 100 percent Medicaid reimbursement to its Federally Qualified Health Clinics, or FQHCs.
Private practices accepting Medicaid in Missouri receive only a 30 percent reimbursement. Perhaps the National Federation of Independent Business, a champion of small business rights, does represent the small-business owner aspect of dentistry better than our own ADA. Contact your state trustees and ADA delegates and question their position statements and knowledge of the FQHC problem affecting rural dental practices over the entire U.S.
