Orthodontists met with lawmakers to debate affected person security, workforce challenges, and pupil mortgage debt.
Greater than 120 members of the American Affiliation of Orthodontists (AAO) met with federal lawmakers in Washington, DC, this week through the 2026 Skilled Advocacy Convention. The group advocated for insurance policies associated to affected person protections, the orthodontic workforce, and entry to care.
“Our members are in Washington this week to work with policymakers on options that defend sufferers, assist the orthodontic workforce, and assist guarantee extra households can entry the care they want,” says Trey Lawrence, CEO of the AAO, in a launch.
Affiliation Outlines Key Advocacy Priorities
Throughout conferences with members of the 119th Congress, AAO members centered on a number of coverage areas, together with challenges for small companies, federal teledentistry laws, pupil mortgage debt, and increasing entry to care.
The affiliation highlighted the necessity to forestall federal overregulation of orthodontic places of work, deal with workforce wants, and assist the accountable use of Synthetic Intelligence (AI) in medical apply.
Teledentistry Oversight and Affected person Safety
A major focus of the advocacy effort was affected person security in teledentistry, significantly regarding some direct-to-consumer mail-order orthodontic fashions. In accordance with a 2023 AAO survey, 77% of orthodontists reported treating sufferers who required retreatment after utilizing mail-order companies.
The AAO is supporting insurance policies that might require an in-person examination earlier than orthodontic therapy or gadgets are prescribed through teledentistry.
“Fairly than proscribing teledentistry, we wish to guarantee it’s used responsibly, with the best safeguards in place earlier than therapy begins,” says Nathan Mick, vice chairman of advocacy for the AAO, in a launch. “We’re in DC representing not simply our orthodontist members, but additionally sufferers all through the nation.”
Addressing Scholar Mortgage Debt for Future Orthodontists
The AAO additionally urged lawmakers to deal with the coed mortgage debt burden on future orthodontists. The typical mortgage debt for an orthodontic resident is roughly $567,000. New federal borrowing caps set to take impact July 1, 2026, could not cowl the complete value of residency applications, probably rising residents’ reliance on non-public loans.
Members advocated for insurance policies just like the Resident Schooling Deferred Curiosity (REDI) Act, which might permit medical and dental residents to defer pupil mortgage funds interest-free throughout their coaching.
“Orthodontists serve sufferers in communities throughout the nation, together with rural and underserved areas the place entry to specialty care can already be restricted,” says Dr Steven M Siegel, AAO president for 2025-26, in a launch. “We’re urging lawmakers to contemplate insurance policies that strengthen the longer term orthodontic workforce and guarantee sufferers in all places can proceed to entry the specialised care they want.”
Photograph: ID 2942352 © Alberto Dubini | Dreamstime.com
