January 7, 2011
Dear Colleagues: On behalf of the Midwestern Society of Orthodontist’s, Greetings and Best Wishes for the New Year. The year 2010 was filled with major events for the MSO. President John Kanyusik led us superbly with his calm, capable and professional manner. Brent Larson’s leadership as MSO Trustee to the AAO was stellar and between these remarkable leaders we remain predominantly Minnesota “nice” on the Executive committee. I wish to commend John and Brent for an exceptional year!
Our year began with the AAO Professional Advocacy Conference in Washington, D.C. where Dr. Arnie Hill and I joined Dr. Mike Hipp from Iowa, Dr. Scott Hamilton from Kansas and 63 other fellow advocates from around the country. Our focus as we spoke with legislators was #1 Support Oral Health Initiatives: Whereas the AAO believes the most important factor with dental health care is that all individuals have access to primary oral healthcare, especially children, therefore encouraging the inclusion of pediatric dental coverage in the Essential Benefits Package. We lent support for the House and Senate to include funding for dental training programs in the field of general, pediatric or public health dentistry. Our position on Midlevel provider legislation stated that our most vulnerable populations should not be forced to sacrifice quality for access. There is no adequate substitute for the skills of a professionally trained dentist. The AAO supports efforts to expand the oral health workforce only where it meets all state licensing requirements and accreditation standards and we believe mid-level providers should be explicitly prohibited from performing any surgical or irreversible procedures. Focus #2 Strengthen Support and Growth of Small Businesses: We lent support for the Senate language that would exempt small business employers from any mandate to provide health insurance coverage. We encouraged tax credits that would make it easier for small businesses to offer coverage to our employees. The AAO advocates applauded the House for efforts to exempt small businesses from the Red Flags Rule and encouraged the Senate to follow suit. This rule would have required us to develop and implement identity theft prevention programs in our offices. Focus #3 Preserve Access and Affordability for Oral Health Care: Whereas the AAO strongly encouraged Congress to eliminate the unnecessary cap on Flexible Spending Accounts to ensure which we believe would have the unintended consequence of limiting access to critical health care services and threaten affordability. We opposed the proposed excise tax on high-cost medical pans as well as the surtax on high earners. The AAO supports coverage of supplementary, prevention oriented benefits such as dental and vision care as well as FSA’s and has grave concerns that the proposed tax on health plans beyond a set threshold would cause employers to drop such supplementary coverage. We opposed a tax on medical devices explaining that with our fees reduced because of the economic situation and with increases in supply costs, orthodontists will find it more challenging than ever to maintain our practices and avoid sacrificing employee jobs.
We will return again in 2 weeks, January 24-26 for the 2011 Advocacy Conference. With the election changes of this past year and new faces in the House and Senate, we look ahead with hopeful anticipation that our efforts can affect change and influence our new leaders on Capitol Hill. We will be meeting with legislators in their first weeks on the job and look forward to the buzz and excitement of January on the Hill. Thank you for your financial support to AAOPAC this year, which allows us this important legislative impact. The MSO was recognized by the AAOPAC in 2010 as being the constituent with the highest percentage of contributors to the AAOPAC. To help us to keep this recognition alive, Arnie and I on behalf of the AAOPAC committee encourage you to stop at the table in the foyer and complete a pledge card for a $250 donation to this cause. We can with sincere confidence say that your donation will work directly and diligently on your behalf as an AAO member at Capitol Hill.
On February 24, John Byer and John Aamodt will head to San Diego, California to represent the MAO and MSO at the AAO Leadership Conference held in conjunction with the AAO Mid-Winter meeting. Please think of us, if only briefly, back here in the Land of 10,000 frozen Lakes!!
Next in yearly highlights, of course the World Federation of Orthodontist’s Conference in Sydney, Australia on February 6-9 was an amazing trip for many of you. Because my children were studying in Copenhagen, my travel took me to northern Europe, but I heard the “down under” hospitality was unmatchable and the scenery magical. The next WFO will be in London September 20-23, 2015 and I have seen in person the outstanding venue for this meeting at the Excel Center and encourage your attendance. The MSO executive board strongly considered holding our annual session in conjunction with the WFO in 2015, but will instead have it during our gorgeous October weather right here in Minnesota. Other upcoming MSO meetings to place on your calendars are for 2012, during the first week of August an Alaskan Cruise; September, 19-22, 2013 Hyatt Regency in Kansas City, Missouri, September 21-23, 2014 at Hilton Hotel in Chicago combined with Great Lakes Society and October 8-10, 2015 either Minneapolis or Rochester, Minnesota.
In May this year brought the AAO annual session and House of Delegates to Washington, D.C. where MSO leadership marched in from both sides of the border. Presidential inauguration of the year was of MSO’s own Lee Graber. Keith Levin, Winnipeg ran an efficient ship as first year Speaker of the House. John Pershing of Nebraska received the Eugene and Pauline Blair AAOF Distinguished Service Award. Ed Noffel of Missouri received the 2010 Governmental Relations Volunteer of the Year Award and Bailey Jacobson was honored as ABO’s Earl and Wilma Shepard Distinguished Service Award. The House passed Bylaws changes to allow dues paying members who have suffered significant financial hardship or medical hardship or who serve in the reserves and have been activated for military duty be exempt from paying 100% or 50% (determined by the association in its discretion) dues and assessments. AAO Critical issues were revised during the House to include the following considered critical for the next 1-3 years: Consumer Awareness; Transition of Recent Graduates to Practice—Practice opportunity and manageable student debt; Relationships with General Dentists and other professionals; Advocacy, Government Affairs, Access to Care; Operating, Marketing and Cost Management of an Orthodontic Practice. The House rescinded the AAO advertising Materials and Fees policy in order to permit utilization of redeemable no charge initial examination coupons by the public in AAO member’s offices. AAO House voted to sponsor a symposium to develop a mission, method of interaction within the AAO governance structure and key policy and educational goals for Craniofacial Anomalies and Special Need Orthodontics. The House expressed it’s desire for the AAOSI to take the necessary steps to form the AAO Credit Union and we have Lee Sinna as our local worker bee putting endless hours of business sense and financial expertise into the project.
John Kanyusik, Brent Larson and I will be your MSO representatives for the 2011 AAO House of Delegates in Chicago and we ask for resolutions that you wish us to bring to the AAO from your grass roots thoughts here today. Please contact any of us with changes that you feel our national organization should be addressing on your behalf. Delegates all meet at the MSO Ad Interim Board meeting March 18-20 in St. Louis to make these proposals formal and submit them to the AAO House.
Our next successful meeting was on September 22-26 when over 715 attendees participated during the combined Southern Association/MSO meeting at the beautiful Broadmoor Hotel in Colorado Springs all during the beautiful peak fall color display in the Rockies. President Kanyusik joined Dr. Kim Reed in planning a brilliant doctor/staff /exhibitor meeting. Our own members, Brent Larson spoke on ”Practicing in the Present while Preparing for the Future” and Lee Sinna on “Minimizing Your Exposure to Malpractice Claims”. The on-site golf course was world class; trips to Garden of the Gods majestic, touring the U.S. Air Force Academy proud and honorable; riding the Cog Rail to the Top of Pike’s peak breathtaking; and the Royal Gorge Railroad trip, tranquil and serene. I am certain that attendees found, as I did found the entire meeting personally very educational, enjoyable and relaxing. MS0’s 2010 Shepard Distinguished Service Award was presented to Dr. Frank Whipps of Centralia, Illinois for his 20 years of leadership with the Belize Mission Project and has resulted in team members impacting over 20,000 case treatments. Dr. Frank Green of Bloomington, Illinois will be awarded the MSO’s 2011 Shepard award at the MSO annual business meeting in Chicago. Also at our business meeting, the MSO approved a modest dues increase from $160 to $175 to keep up with cost of living increases. Without our annual session this year to bring in our traditional main source of income, MSO is still proposing a break even budget in 2011 because of the dues increase and cost cutting in other areas. We also made a bylaws change to remove the position of vice president at the time of installation of officers in 2012. This change would reduce the time of service by moving officers through the chairs a year sooner and save travel/hotel for one less attendee at 2 annual board meetings. A MSO bylaws change related to waivers and assessments were made to keep current with the AAO bylaws, just as we voted today for those changes in MAO bylaws.
Dr. Jackie Miller of Washington, Missouri was elected as our MSO President while in Colorado Springs. Miller is the first female, as well as first multigenerational MSO President; following in the footsteps of her father the late, former MSO President Frank Miller. Additional elected officers are Drs. Babette Cohen of Manitoba as President-elect, Ross Crist of South Dakota as Vice-president and John Crawford of Wisconsin as Secretary-Treasurer. MSO recognized Dr. Paula Harre for her eight years of service to the MSO board as director from Nebraska and welcomed two new incoming directors: Drs. Kim Stafford of Nebraska and Jane Bentz of Wisconsin. In order to support President Lee Graber and his amazing AAO annual scientific session in our own backyard of Chicago May 13-17 this year, the MSO is not holding a fall annual session. Instead we will hold our MSO business meeting prior to opening ceremonies on Saturday, May 14, 2:45-3:30. I encourage your attendance for the MSO business meeting and to invite your staff and family for this unique venue at McCormick Center where Steve Litton, General Session Chair and Bonnie Litton along with the other members of the planning committee have arranged exciting surprises in all corners of Chicago’s educational program. Bill Proffit, Tiziano Baccetti and Katherine Vig will present Angle, Salzmann and Mershon annual lectures respectively. There will be a Manufacturer’s Forum where industry representatives will present new innovations and where the world’s largest orthodontic exhibit hall will be packed with excitement. Opening ceremonies will have us dancing in the aisles to the legendary band “Chicago”; and of course world class shopping on Magnificent Mile, live theater, Millennium Park, fine dining and cultural sites and an orthodontic fashion show will fill our social life.
As an update to Smiles Change Lives, our neighbors Wisconsin and Illinois joined the cause and now all 50 states are considered included in the program, enhancing program exposure. Currently in Minnesota 55 kids are either assigned to orthodontists, in treatment or have completed treatment. Another 15 children were examined in the fall and placed with orthodontists. 30 orthodontists see all of these children. Another 20 orthodontists have signed up but have not been assigned a patient yet. Our first patients in the program are now out of treatment. Steve Litton continues to volunteer and offer his guidance to this life-altering endeavor for our state’s underprivileged children.
Thank you, it has been a Privilege to serve as your Director! Your support over the years has been heartwarming. I wish to welcome and Congratulate Kevin Denis for his nomination as your new director. I am confident that Kevin will represent you gracefully and masterfully at the MSO.
Respectfully submitted,
Dr. Deborah Lien
Minnesota’s Director to the MSO