A week before the United States Congress shut its doors to recess for the Democratic and Republican conventions, representatives of the American Alliance of TMD Organizations called on congressional leaders in their Washington, DC offices. The following are the professionals who sweated through the heat, numerous treks, stairways, and underground railway system between the Capitol, Senate and House buildings: Bill Adams, Mike Baylin, Kay and Don Chase, Jack Haden, Steven Kilpatrick, Richard Klein, Mike Long, Riley Lunn, Peter Neff, and Larry Tilley visited seventeen congressional offices in three days. Our concerns are related to two major issues. The first issue is the lack of funding for relevant clinical research. The second issue is managed care reform, which to a large degree centers around ERISA (Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974). ERISA is a federal law through which insurance companies may circumvent state insurance commissioners’ rulings. Most state insurance commissioners have ruled that the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) must be acknowledged in the same way that other joints in the body are acknowledged. I would like to tell you that all of our objectives were met with enthusiasm and dispatch: politics move more slowly in the real world. We did, however, get assurance that letters to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR) would be written from six congressional offices. This action will encourage more money to be allocated for multidisciplinary research and funds earmarked for clinical temporomandibular disorder (TMD) studies. We emphasized in our discussions that this research should be done by accomplished clinical practitioners who routinely treat TMD patients. Also on this trip, we uncovered a letter from Senator Edward Kennedy to NIH, asking that a higher priority be given to TMD research. Senator Kennedy’s timely letter pointed out the unique position the NIH plays in increasing the understanding of TMD and bringing numerous institutions together in a multidisciplinary approach. Most of the congressional men and women were receptive to our presentation of these worthwhile goals. Following this editorial is a list of the offices that were visited. A list of contact persons and fax numbers are included. If you would like to support our efforts by contacting one of these offices, especially if you reside within their state, please use their fax number and/or address for this purpose. Many more congressional leaders need to be contacted for assistance in the future. You can meet with them in your home state as well as in Washington, DC. If you are unable to contact them until after the election, at least you will then know who will be in office to work with us. The first step has been taken; those who participated in this endeavor are extremely encouraged by the warm response and penetrating questions that showed congressional concern and understanding. Follow-up calls and letters are needed to continue the process. The election is but a few weeks away. It is still a good time to influence your particular senator or congressional representative or you can wait until after the election and begin afresh to help with their agenda. We can no longer sit still and hope things will change for the better. We must be proactive. Our cause is just and our patients need the benefit of our efforts.
CONTACTS
Representative Office Contact Fax Number Address*
Sen. Lamar Alexander (R) TN Austin Bryan 202-228-3398 SH 302
Rep. Michael Bilirakis (R) FL Jesu Haggarty 202-225-4085 2269 RHOB
Sen. Saxby Chambliss (R) GA Monty Philpot 202-224-0103 SR 416
Rep. Lincoln Davis (D) TN Joye Purser, PhD 202-226-5172 504 CHOB
Rep. Nathan Deal (R) GA Brandon J. Clark 202-225-8272 2437 RHOB
Sen. John Edwards (D) NC Leslie 202-228-1374 SD 225
Sen. Bill Frist (R) TN Jennifer Romans 202-228-1264 SD 461
Rep. Bart Gordon (D) TN David Plunkett 202-225-6887 2304 RHOB
Sen. Tom Harkin (D) IA Eric Fatemi 202-224-9319 SH 731
Sen. Barbara A. Mikulski (D) MD Rhonda S. Richards 202-224-8858 SH 709
Rep. Sue Myrick (R) NC Lisa Mortier Waltzman 202-225-3389 230 CHOB
Rep. Charlie Norwood (R) GA Rodney Whitlock, PhD 202-226-0776 2452 RHOB
Rep. David Obey (D) WI Christine Hamilton 202-225-3240 2314 RHOB
Sen. Pat Roberts (R) KS Jennifer A. Swensen 202-224-3514 SH 109
Sen. Richard Shelby (R) AL Anne 202-224-3416 SH 110
Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D) MI 202-228-0325 SH 702
Rep. Zach Wamp (R) TN Melissa J. Chapman 202-225-3494 2447 RHOB
*SH: Hart Building, 2nd and C Streets NE, Washington, DC 20510
RHOB: Rayburn House Office Building, Independence Ave. and South Capitol St. SW, Washington, DC 20515
SR: Russell Building, 1st and C Streets NE, Washington, DC 20510
CHOB: Cannon House Office Building, 1st Street and Independence Ave. SE, Washington, DC 20515
SD: Dirksen Building, 1st and C Streets NE, Washington, DC 20510
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