May 29, 2020
U.S. House Passes Paycheck Protection Program Flexibility Act
On Thursday, May 28, the U.S. House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed bipartisan legislation aimed at giving small businesses more time and flexibility to use their Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) funds.

HR 7010, the Paycheck Protection Program Flexibility Act, passed the House 417-1. Rep. The Senate will now decide whether to take up HR 7010 or present its own bill regarding flexibility for the Paycheck Protection Program.

The American Dental Association (ADA) and Organized Dentistry Coalition both sent letters earlier this week in support of the bill.

The PPP is a loan established by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act to provide a direct incentive for small businesses to keep or rehire their workers.

Provisions in the bill the ADA and other dental organizations support include:

  • Extending the expense forgiveness period from eight weeks to 24 weeks.
  • Reducing the 75% payroll ratio requirement to 60%.
  • Allowing payroll tax deferment for Paycheck Protection Program recipients.
  • Extending the June 30 rehiring deadline.

Follow all of the ADA’s advocacy efforts in response to the pandemic at ADA.org/COVID19Advocacy.
Kansas Dental Charitable Foundation Postpones KMOM Wichita Event
Around the world, festivals, sporting events, conferences, and community celebrations are still being cancelled or postponed due to concerns over the spread of COVID-19. Event organizers have had to make difficult decisions about how to proceed.

Kansas has not been immune; and, unfortunately, the Kansas Mission of Mercy (KMOM) has fallen into this category.

The Kansas Dental Charitable Foundation (KDCF) Board, Bill Blasing, Executive Director for the America's Dentists Care Foundation (ADCF), and key KMOM organizers met this week via Zoom to discuss the pending contract for the 2021 KMOM project being planned for Hartman Arena north of Wichita in February.

It was determined that, at this point, there just isn’t enough information on how to safely proceed with a clinic of that size due to the amount of aerosols produced, social distancing, and the number of people in the arena at one time.

Therefore, KMOM Wichita is being POSTPONED.

With new recommendations emerging almost daily, we are hopeful to have new safety protocols and guidance meant for mobile dental clinics such as KMOM. We are looking at dates later in 2021, and will keep you updated via the KDCF web site, Facebook, and Twitter pages.
ADA Develops COVID-19 Hazard Assessment Guide and Checklist
As a companion to the Return to Work Interim Guidance Toolkit, the ADA has developed the COVID-19 Hazard Assessment Guide and Checklist, designed to help you evaluate COVID-19 related hazards to which dental employees may be exposed.

Exclusively available to ADA members, the guide is modeled after OSHA’s Hazard Identification and Assessment, but created specifically with COVID-19 and the dental practice in mind.

Dentists will be able to gain information on risk factors such as local disease transmission rates, patient- and treatment-specific issues, and facility considerations. A supplemental checklist to the guide will help you evaluate hazard levels in your practice during a specific point in time.

Be sure to view/download these new materials, then review and discuss them with your staff. All materials are available in the KDA COVID-19 Resource Center at ksdental.org/virus.
CDC to Host Webinar on Updated Interim Guidance for Dental Settings
As you saw last week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has updated its Interim Infection Prevention and Control Guidance for Dental Settings.

As such, the CDC is hosting a Clinical Outreach and Communication Activity (COCA) call for dental health care providers to discuss the updated guidance:

Date: Wednesday, June 3, 2020
Time: 3:00 - 4:00 PM (CST)

Dentists and their teams can participate via Zoom with the meeting ID #161 543 7963, or watch the broadcast on Facebook live. The accompanying slideshow will be soon be available to view/download on the CDC COCA call web page.

During this COCA call, presenters will provide an overview of the updated guidance for dental settings, including recommendations for resuming non-emergency dental care during the COVID-19 pandemic. Presenters also will discuss strategies for dental healthcare facilities to optimize personal protective equipment (PPE).
The KDA Weekly e-newsletter is designed to keep you informed of the most recent topics related to the Kansas Dental Association and its members. If you have ideas for improving our communication correspondence, we'd love to hear from you. Thank you for reading.
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Kansas Dental Association
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