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Dentsply Sirona Academy Reaches Attendance Milestone

Posted on Monday, December 30, 2019

Dentsply Sirona is proud to announce its Charlotte-based Dentsply Sirona Academy welcomed more than 10,000 guests through its doors in 2019.

In its first full year of operation, the 28,525 sq. ft. state-of-theart training facility held nearly 500 events, including continuing education sessions, training, customer meetings, and study clubs.

“This is an incredible achievement,” said VP of Marketing Ingo Zimmer. “The clinical affairs team worked tirelessly to make sure those thousands of guests each enjoyed their experience and left understanding just how committed Dentsply Sirona is to empowering dental professionals through innovation and education.”

Opening late May 2018, the Dentsply Sirona Academy features the most advanced and proven dental product solutions in a clinical setting. The space includes multiple classrooms, a 288-seat auditorium, seven fully outfitted operatories, and two simulation labs. It offers a wide variety of clinical and technical courses, including hands-on teaching, live lectures, and on-demand webinars.

“This academy is the embodiment of our educational philosophy,” said Clinical Affairs Director Nick Harrison. “Not only is it a place where dental professionals can hear and see our end-to-end solutions through our procedures and workflows, but it’s a place they can actually experience them hands-on.”


Dentsply Sirona offers a special thank you for this accomplishment to their education partners, Spear Education and CEREC Doctors, as well as the incredible promotion from their supporting dental professionals and customers.

The academy is finished with its course offerings for the year but will start back up in early January 2020. For more information on the Dentsply Sirona Academy and its course offerings, visit https://academy.dentsplysirona.com/enus.







America’s ToothFairy Welcomes Five New Clinics to Resource Program

Posted on Thursday, December 26, 2019

America’s ToothFairy recently welcomed five new nonprofit dental clinics to its Dental Resource Program, which supplies an array of support to safety-net clinics providing oral health services to more than 500,000 children in underserved communities across the United States. The additions bring the total number active in the program to 74 in 27 states.

“It’s always exciting to have new clinics partner with us,” America’s ToothFairy Executive Director, Jill Malmgren said. “Our Dental Resource Program is designed to help nonprofit clinics deliver a system of care that breaks down the barriers that low-income families and underserved communities face. Without this system, many children would require extractions and expensive, painful procedures that could have been avoided with access to regular preventive care. Working with these new clinics gives us an opportunity to help new populations of children who otherwise would have no other place to go for dental care.”

The five clinics joining the program are Blueridge Health in Hendersonville, NC, University of Washington School of Dentistry in Seattle, WA, Tri County Community Action Program in Tamworth, NH, Serve the People Community Health Center in Santa Ana, CA, and HealthCore Clinic in Wichita, KS.

Since 2006, the programs of America’s ToothFairy have helped their partners provide dental care and oral health education to more than 10.4 million children and caregivers. The organization’s 2019 impact report can be viewed at ATKids.org. Contributions to their annual year-end giving campaign support educational outreach and preventive service programs for their member clinics. Donations can be made at AmericasToothFairy.org or at bit.ly/ATEOY20.

About America’s ToothFairy: National Children’s Oral Health Foundation

As a resource provider, America’s ToothFairy increases access to oral health care by supporting nonprofit clinics and community partners delivering education, prevention and treatment services for underserved children. Since its inception in 2006, America’s ToothFairy has distributed more than $21 million in donated products, educational materials and financial grants to improve oral health outcomes for children and youth in need. For more information, visit AmericasToothFairy.org







AAOMS and Henry Schein Cares Foundation Grants Awarded

Posted on Thursday, December 26, 2019

The American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons (AAOMS) and the Henry Schein Cares Foundation are supporting the volunteer service of four oral and maxillofacial surgeons (OMSs) through the joint Global Outreach Program.

For the fifth consecutive year, AAOMS and the Foundation are presenting $2,500 grants to four doctors to help fund their oral and maxillofacial surgery care in the United States or overseas. The program also offers each recipient $2,000 in healthcare products courtesy of Henry Schein Cares, which aims to increase the delivery of healthcare services and information to at-risk and underserved communities.

“Since 2015, the Global Outreach Program has provided support to oral and maxillofacial surgeons in their efforts to deliver critical care around the world through such needed procedures as cleft lip and palate repair and tumor removal,” said AAOMS President Victor L. Nannini, DDS, FACS. “Oral and maxillofacial surgeons help change lives.”

The 2019 grant recipients are:

KyungHoon Chung, DDS, MD, of Clearlake, Calif., will serve on Mercy Ships in Dakar, Senegal, and plans to use the grant to cover a surgical set for cleft lip and palate repair as well as travel expenses. Other procedures he will conduct will include bone grafting and surgery to remove tumors in patients from 4 months old to adulthood.

Gary Parker, DDS, of Lindale, Texas, has served as a full-time volunteer OMS with Mercy Ships for the last 32 years. During his seven-month service in Senegal, his team expects to treat 120 patients and perform 600 surgical procedures, including cleft lip and palate repair as well as reconstruction of lips, cheeks and noses. He also will train Senegalese surgeons.

Steven M. Roser, DMD, MD, FACS, of Atlanta, Ga., is the team leader for a surgical mission to Santa Cruz, Bolivia, that will conduct surgery on approximately 60 children with cleft deformities. The mission also strives to help prepare local surgeons to sustain a surgical program at their hospitals. The mission includes OMS residents from the United States and Bolivia.

Daniel Witcher, DDS, of Solana, Beach, Calif., expects to use the grant for the John Geis DDS Dental Clinic at Veterans Village of San Diego, which offers rehabilitation services to military veterans. Volunteer dentists provide free dental care, including full-mouth restorations, to the nearly 200 Village residents and other area veterans.

The experts in face, mouth and jaw surgery® — The American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons (AAOMS) is the professional organization representing more than 11,000 oral and maxillofacial surgeons, OMS residents and OMS professional staff in the United States. AAOMS supports its fellows’ and members’ ability to practice their specialty through education, research and advocacy. AAOMS fellows and members comply with rigorous continuing education requirements and submit to periodic office anesthesia evaluations. For additional information about oral and maxillofacial surgery, visit the AAOMS websites at AAOMS.org and MyOMS.org.

 







Get a New Look on Dental with the Midwest Stylus Plus Mini

Posted on Monday, December 23, 2019

Dentsply Sirona, the world’s largest manufacturer of professional dental product and technologies, introduces the new Midwest® Stylus Plus Mini highspeed air handpiece. The new design features an improved grip and shorter head to allow deeper access, without compromising performance and durability.

"For years, Dentsply Sirona has been committed to developing high performance instruments that offer the ultimate integration of design, performance and integrity,” said Jason Coleman, Product Marketing Manager for Dentsply Sirona. “Our newest addition, the Midwest® Stylus Plus Mini, is no exception.”

The Midwest® Stylus Plus Mini has a new patented grip design with a mix of dimpled and flats areas to help with intuitive index positioning. Additionally, the modified grip design provides clinicians with clear tactile feedback on hand orientation for a high degree of handpiece control. As part of the Midwest® Stylus Plus family of handpieces, the new Midwest® Stylus Plus Mini integrates the exclusive Dynamic Speed Control technology. The combination of this technology and the new patented air foil allows the handpiece to help limit excess free speeds as well as reduce stopping time. In addition, as part of the Dentsply Sirona Midwest® High Speed product line, the new Midwest® Stylus Plus Mini smaller head increases visibility without impacting the cutting power.

Ceramic bearings, computer aided balancing, and tuned air flow make this an impressive addition to the powerful small heads in the Midwest® line. 

About Dentsply Sirona

Dentsply Sirona is the world’s largest manufacturer of professional dental products and technologies, with a 130-year history of innovation and service to the dental industry and patients worldwide. Dentsply Sirona develops, manufactures, and markets a comprehensive

solutions offering including dental and oral health products as well as other consumable medical devices under a strong portfolio of world class brands. As The Dental Solutions CompanyTM, Dentsply Sirona’s products provide innovative, high-quality and effective solutions to advance patient care and deliver better, safer and faster dentistry. Dentsply Sirona’s global headquarters is located in York, Pennsylvania, and the international headquarters is based in Salzburg, Austria. The company’s shares are listed in the United States on NASDAQ under the symbol XRAY. Visit www.dentsplysirona.com for more information about Dentsply Sirona and its products.







Dentsply Sirona Releases New Palodent® 360 Circumferential Matrix System

Posted on Friday, December 20, 2019

Throw Away your Tofflemire

Place. Twist. Done. with the Palodent® 360 Circumferential Matrix System


Dentsply Sirona, the world’s largest manufacturer of professional dental products and technologies, introduces the new Palodent® 360 circumferential matrix system. This revolutionary new design allows clinicians to achieve tight contacts with anatomically natural contours without the use of an awkward retainer or applicator and all with a simple twist of their fingers.

“The newest addition to the Palodent® family of matrix systems will provide clinicians with all the tools they need to easily conduct any Class II restorations with complete confidence,” said Paquita Poindexter, Product Marketing Manager for Dentsply Sirona Restorative.” The simplicity of the Palodent® 360 circumferential matrix systems allows for simpler, quick restorations for the clinician and the patient.”

Like the Palodent® Plus sectional matrix system, Palodent® 360 features an anatomically shaped matrix band to provide predictable, tight contacts that replicate natural tooth anatomy. The new system can be used for all Class II restorations including difficult Class II cases, such as situations where there is no adjacent tooth or there is a severely rotated tooth.

Furthermore, increase efficiency with the use of the Palodent® 360 system by decreasing the time needed for set up. Additional benefits of the new simplified design include:

• Ease of Placement

• No retainer to obstruct access

• Clear View of the Operating Field

• No uncomfortable retainer

Palodent® 360 matrix bands are compatible with the Palodent® Plus retaining rings and wedges to further assist in creating an optimal  seal  or  additional space in situations where there is a tight interproximal space. With the addition of the Palodent® 360 circumferential matrix system, the  Palodent® family of matrix systems can cover all posterior Class II restorations.

For excellent restorations, faster and easier than you ever thought possible, turn to Palodent® 360. Success comes full circle.

To see how the new Palodent® 360 system works, visit the Dentsply Sirona Restorative YouTube Channel and for more information, visit https://www.dentsplysirona.com/palodent360.

ABOUT DENTSPLY SIRONA:

Dentsply Sirona is the world’s largest manufacturer of professional dental products and technologies, with a 130-year history of innovation and service to the dental industry and patients worldwide. Dentsply Sirona develops, manufactures, and markets a comprehensive solutions offering including dental and oral health products as well as other consumable medical devices under a strong portfolio of world class brands. As The Dental Solutions CompanyTM, Dentsply Sirona’s products provide innovative, high-quality and effective solutions to advance patient care and deliver better, safer and faster dentistry. Dentsply Sirona’s global headquarters is located in York, Pennsylvania, and the international headquarters is based in Salzburg, Austria. The company’s shares are listed in the United States on NASDAQ under the symbol XRAY. Visit www.dentsplysirona.com for more information about Dentsply Sirona and its products.







Senate Votes To Repeal The Medical Device Excise Tax

Posted on Friday, December 20, 2019

Congress Approves Sweeping End of Year Legislation

Before adjourning for the holidays, Congress moved swiftly to pass a broad package totaling $1.4 trillion in new spending that includes eight appropriations measures, comprises numerous other bills related to health care, retirement, pharmaceuticals, tax policy, among other things. House lawmakers December 17th voted 297-120 in favor of a measure (H.R. 1865). The Senate approved the bill today, December 19th by a vote of 71-23. President Trump is expected to sign the bill into law on Friday, December 20th.

Below is a summary of key items including changes to health care, retirement, and tax provisions which may be of interest to Dental Trade Alliance members:

Health Care

The measure would permanently repeal three taxes imposed under the Affordable Care Act:

A 2.3% tax on medical devices, which is currently suspended through Dec. 31, 2019. The tax applies to devices sold by a manufacturer, producer, or importer.

The “Cadillac” tax on high-cost employer health plans, which is scheduled to take effect in 2022. The tax was originally set to take effect in 2018 and apply to employer-sponsored health plans that in that year cost more than $10,200 for individuals and $27,500 for families. The rate is set at 40% of coverage costs that exceed those thresholds, which will be adjusted annually for inflation.

An annual fee imposed on health insurance providers.

The measure also would extend through May 22, 2020, Medicaid Money-Follows-the-Person demonstration grant program and protection against spousal impoverishment when a married individual is receiving home and community-based services.

The measure would increase the minimum age to purchase tobacco products to 21 years of age, from 18.

Retirement

The measure includes provisions that largely reflect the “Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act” or “SECURE Act,” which the House passed 417-3 on May 23, 2019.

The measure’s retirement plan provisions would:

Require individuals to begin taking distributions from their retirement accounts generally after they turn 72, instead of 70 1/2. It would also eliminate the prohibition on traditional individual retirement account (IRA) contributions once owners turn 70 1/2.

Require employers to include long-term part-time workers in 401(k) plans. They can currently exclude employees who work less than 1,000 hours per year.

Establish a “pooled plan” option for two or more companies that aren’t in the same industry to offer defined-contribution plans or IRAs to their employees.

Provide relief from the “one bad apple” rule for multiemployer and pooled plans. Plans wouldn’t be treated as failing to meet defined contribution plan or IRA requirements if one employer in the plan didn’t meet its obligations.

Increase tax credit for small employer pension plan startup costs, and provide a credit for small employer plans that adopt automatic enrollment.

Allow 401(k) plans that automatically enroll employees to escalate elective contributions to as much as 15% of an employee’s salary, instead of 10%, after the first plan year.

Bar plans from making loans to participants through credit cards.

Allow 529 education savings plans to be used for apprenticeship program expenses. As much as $10,000 over a person’s lifetime could be used for education loan payments.

Tax Extenders

The measure would temporarily renew more than 30 expired or expiring tax provisions.

The floor for the medical expense deduction would be temporarily reduced through 2020. Individuals could deduct unreimbursed medical expenses greater than 7.5% of their adjusted gross income (AGI), instead of 10%.

A credit for employers that provide paid certain paid family medical leave, which was established for two years under the 2017 tax overhaul (Public Law 115-97).

The Work Opportunity Tax Credit for employers that hire individuals from certain groups that face barriers to employment.







Roland DGA Strengthens its Dental Dealer Channel with the Appointment of Nowak Dental Supplies as an Authorized Reseller

Posted on Friday, December 20, 2019

Roland DGA Corporation, a leading provider of digital dental milling machines, has announced the signing of Carriere, Mississippi-based Nowak Dental Supplies Inc. as the company’s newest authorized dental dealer. A familyowned and operated corporation celebrating their 75th year in business, Nowak Dental Supplies will now offer Roland DGA’s complete line of DGSHAPE dental devices and accessories to laboratories throughout the US.

“Like Roland and DGSHAPE, the Nowak name has been synonymous with high quality products and unsurpassed customer service for decades,” said Roland DGA Eastern US Sales Manager Ian O’Neill. “With the addition of our cutting-edge DWX series to their comprehensive portfolio, Nowak Dental Supplies will now be able to supply their customers with the most precise, efficient, and reliable digital mills on the market today.” 

Shawn Nowak, president of Nowak Dental Supplies Inc., is excited about his company’s new partnership with Roland DGA. “We are thrilled to become a Roland DGA authorized DGSHAPE dealer,” Nowak said. “Both of our companies have worked extremely hard to earn high reputations within the industry. This addition shows that our new digital division, nowakdigital.com, is partnering with only the best in the business.”







Aspen Dental Celebrates Major Milestone with Opening of 800th Office

Posted on Friday, December 20, 2019

Aspen Dental, the largest and fastest-growing branded network of dental offices in the country, is closing out the decade by celebrating a significant milestone: the opening of the 800th Aspen Dental location in Southern Pines, NC. The achievement comes as nine new Aspen Dental offices prepare to open their doors across seven states: Fayetteville, Georgia; Kansas City and Lawrence, Kansas; Canton, Michigan; Royal Oak, Michigan; Kansas City, Missouri; Lincoln, Nebraska; Southern Pines, North Carolina; and Mechanicsville, Virginia.

“A new Aspen Dental office opens every four days, which is a direct reflection of the shared commitment between ADMI and the doctors whose practices we support to help patients get the care they need,” said Bob Fontana, chairman and CEO of Aspen Dental Management, Inc. (ADMI), the dental support organization (DSO) that provides business support services to Aspen Dental practices. “I’m incredibly proud of the work that the doctors and team members do to break down barriers to care and the positive impact they have on the tens of thousands of patients who walk through their doors every single day.”

Since it was founded in 1998, Aspen Dental has grown consistently in response to the unmet need for accessible, affordable, and comprehensive dental care. Today, an estimated 25,000 patients receive care in an Aspen Dental location every day and there are nearly 12,000 team members across the country. Unlike most DSO-supported practices, Aspen Dental’s growth is entirely de novo, meaning that every office is built from the ground up rather than via acquisition, a strategy designed to create a consistent patient offering from office to office.

Central to this success is the community of engaged dentists and staff who are connected by their commitment to changing lives and making a difference, delivering a patient-centric model built to break down barriers so that patients can get the care they need, today. Each location has an on-site lab, is open extended hours, including evenings and Saturdays to accommodate walk-in patients and emergency care, provides free or low-cost exams and X-rays for new patients without dental insurance, works with all insurance plans, and offers flexible financing and a Denture Money Back Guarantee.

In an industry that is expected to experience 7% growth in employment of dentists by 2028, doctors increasingly choose Aspen Dental not only for access to best-in-class business services and expertise, but also to join a community of like-minded professionals who share their commitment to a culture that puts people—teams and patients—first and values support, community, and camaraderie.







Dr. Gesica Horn Named AACD Accredited Fellow Member

Posted on Friday, December 20, 2019

MADISON, Wis. 

(12/20/19)— Gesica Horn, DDS, FAACD, has just been named the 86th Accredited Fellow of the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry (AACD). The purpose of Fellowship is to recognize the highest level of achievement for members in accordance with the AACD's mission of education and excellence.

Dr. Gesica Horn received her doctorate in Dental Surgery from the University of Minnesota School of Dentistry and finished her undergraduate work at the University of North Dakota. Dr. Horn is a graduate of the Kois Center, Dawson Academy Alumni, and a frequent attendee at Spear Education. Her passion for cosmetic dentistry started early in her career, and she has made it her goal to pursue the best training and be the best she can be for her patients. Dr.Horn has a private practice in North Oaks, MN, outside Minneapolis. Horn and her dentist husband have two children who keep them busy with kid’s activities, travel, and enjoying their lake cabin.

Dr. Horn will be honored for this achievement at the 36th Annual AACD Scientific Session Celebration of Excellence in Orlando on April 25th, 2020.

To learn more about the AACD’s Fellowship Program, visit www.aacd.com/fellowship.

About the AACD

The AACD is the world’s largest non-profit member organization dedicated to advancing excellence in comprehensive oral care that combines art and science to optimally improve dental health, esthetics, and function. Comprised of more than 5,000 cosmetic dental professionals in 80 countries worldwide, the AACD fulfills its mission by offering superior educational opportunities, promoting and supporting a respected Accreditation credential, serving as a user-friendly and inviting forum for the creative exchange of knowledge and ideas, and providing accurate and useful information to the public and the profession.







Nine Health Threats that Made Headlines in 2019: A CDC Review

Posted on Thursday, December 19, 2019

From an outbreak of mysterious lung-injury deaths to America’s near loss of measles elimination status, the beginning of the end of the U.S. HIV epidemic to the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), CDC worked around the clock – and around the globe – to protect Americans from domestic and global health threats in 2019.

Here’s a closer look at some of the biggest health issues that CDC tackled this year.

Responding to outbreaks and threats

Lung Injuries linked to E-Cigarette use, Vaping, (EVALI)

CDC continues investigating the outbreak of lung injury associated with the use of e-cigarette, or vaping, products, together with state and local health departments and federal partners, such as the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

As of December 10, CDC reported 52 deaths and 2,409 cases of hospitalized EVALI by all 50 states, Washington D.C, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

In a breakthrough, CDC laboratories detected vitamin E acetate in the lungs of EVALI patients – direct evidence suggesting that this sticky substance is present in many EVALI cases. Investigation into other possible causes continues.

In September, CDC activated its Emergency Operations Center (EOC) to enhance the inter-agency response to the EVALI outbreak. EOC activation allowed the agency to increase its coordinated operational support for the response to meet the outbreak’s evolving challenges. CDC is providing assistance in epidemiology, disease surveillance, pathologic consultation, clinical guidance development, and communication.

Opioids

Drug overdoses continue to be a major problem across America. There were over 70,000 U.S. drug overdose deaths in 2017, the most recent year for which final data are available. Over two-thirds involved opioids, including heroin and synthetic opioids (such as illicitly manufactured fentanyl and fentanyl analogs). There have also been recent increases in overdose deaths involving cocaine (largely due to contamination with opioids) and methamphetamines and other psychostimulants with misuse potential (both with and without opioids).

The prescribing and dispensing of the overdose-reversing drug naloxone is a critical part of the public health response to the opioid overdose epidemic. Naloxone saves lives – but only if it’s readily available when an overdose occurs. Despite a huge increase in overall prescribing of naloxone, far too little is being dispensed, including in many rural areas of the country where the need is greatest. Moreover, too few doctors are prescribing naloxone to high-risk patients as recommended by CDC’s Guideline for Prescribing Opioids for Chronic Painpdf icon.

As the drug overdose crisis evolves and becomes more complex, CDC is providing $301 million in new Overdose Data to Action funds to states and jurisdictions to align surveillance data with more targeted prevention efforts better. The funds, which will support the work of 47 states, Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico, Northern Mariana Islands, and 16 counties and cities, are part of the Department of Health and Human Services’ Five-point strategy to combat the opioid crisis.

Antibiotic (AR) and Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR)

Antibiotic-resistant (AMR) bacteria and fungi cause more than 2.8 million infections and 35,000 deaths in the United States each year, according to a November 13 CDC report. These are sometimes referred to as antimicrobial-resistant germs.

On average, every 11 seconds someone in the United States gets an antibiotic-resistant (AR) infection – and every 15 minutes, someone dies. When Clostridioides difficile, a bacterium that is not typically resistant but can cause severe diarrhea resulting in death and is associated with antibiotic use, is added to these, the U.S. toll of all the threats exceeds 3 million infections and 48,000 deaths annually.

There were nearly twice as many annual deaths from AR infections as CDC originally reported in 2013.  The update comes from previously unavailable data sources. Since then, prevention efforts have reduced deaths from AR infections by 18% overall and by nearly 30% in hospitals. Without continued vigilance, this progress may be challenged by the increasing burden of some infections.

This year, CDC highlighted the success of the yearlong AMR Challenge, an ambitious global initiative to combat the growing threat of AR. Launched in 2018, CDC obtained nearly 350 commitments from 33 countries, pharmaceutical and health insurance companies, food animal producers and purchasers, and medical professionals and healthcare systems to take specific actions to combat antibiotic resistance.

Foodborne Outbreaks

Throughout 2019, CDC investigated and resolved more than 75 outbreaks related to food or animal contact. Notable Salmonella outbreaks were linked to ground beef, raw turkey, pre-cut melons, and papayas. E. coli outbreaks were linked to flour, ground bison, and romaine lettuce. Additionally, there was the largest ever outbreak of Salmonella infections linked to backyard chickens, and an outbreak of drug-resistant Salmonella infections linked to pig-ear dog treats.

During any multistate foodborne disease outbreak, CDC serves as lead coordinator working in close coordination with public health partners to detect the outbreak, define its size and extent, and to identify the source. Public health officials investigate outbreaks to control them, so more people do not get sick in the outbreak, and to learn how to prevent similar outbreaks from happening in the future.

Pregnancy-Related Deaths

A recent Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) documented persistent racial and ethnic disparities in pregnancy-related deaths. American Indian, Alaska Native, and black women were two to three times as likely to die from a pregnancy-related cause as were white women.

According to a 2019 CDC Vital Signs report, 3 in 5 pregnancy-related deaths could have been prevented. Overall, heart disease and stroke cause more than 1 in 3 pregnancy-related deaths—other leading causes include infections and severe bleeding. The leading causes of death differ by time period throughout pregnancy and after delivery.

Ensuring quality care for mothers throughout pregnancy and the postpartum period can reduce preventable maternal deaths.

Disease Control and Elimination

HIV

Progress in HIV prevention has stalled. Gaps in HIV testing, treatment, and prevention hinder efforts to stop new infections. According to a 2019 Vital Signs report, about 8 in 10 new HIV infections in the U.S. in 2016 came from people not in HIV care. Data also suggest that fewer than 25% of the more than 1 million Americans who could benefit from a daily HIV-prevention pill are using it.

In February, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) proposed the Ending the HIV Epidemic initiative. The plan aims to reduce new HIV infections by 90% by 2030. CDC will play a key role in the proposed initiative, which will leverage critical scientific advances in HIV prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and outbreak response by coordinating the highly successful programs, resources, and infrastructure of many HHS agencies and offices.

Ending the HIV Epidemic aims to achieve maximum impact by first focusing efforts on 48 counties and 7 states; Washington, D.C.; and San Juan, Puerto Rico – where half of HIV diagnoses occur annually – as well as on seven states with a substantial rural HIV burden.

In 2019, HHS, through CDC, awarded $16.5 million to state and local health departments to begin building the foundation for Ending the HIV Epidemic and setting the United States on a path for success.

Measles

This year, there were more U.S. measles cases than in any of the last 25 years. As of December 5, CDC reported 1,276 cases of measles in 31 states for 2019. This is the largest number of cases reported in the U.S. since 1992 (963 cases).

The U.S. maintained its measles elimination status of nearly 20 years after a nearly year-long outbreak in New York City and New York State ended in the fall. The high number of cases in 2019 was primarily the result of a few large outbreaks – one in Washington State and two large outbreaks in New York that started in late 2018, all of them among close, tight-knit communities. Despite high nationwide coverage with the measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine, there are still communities where low vaccination rates leave people vulnerable to these dangerous diseases.

Immunization and Vaccination

According to a 2019 CDC Vital Signs report, nearly two-thirds of pregnant women in the United States have not received the two vaccines recommended during pregnancy for influenza and whooping cough (pertussis). Low rates of vaccination during pregnancy leave expecting moms and babies unprotected and at high risk for hospitalization and even death.

To date, influenza activity for the 2019-2020 season in the United States remains low. Receiving a seasonal influenza vaccine each year remains the best way to prevent seasonal flu.  CDC recommends annual influenza vaccination for everyone 6 months and older with any licensed, influenza vaccine that is appropriate for the recipient’s age and health status. In addition to keeping you from getting sick with flu, the vaccine has other benefits including being life-saving for children, protecting pregnant women and their babies, and reducing the risk of a heart attack in people with heart disease.

A recent study published in CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report revealed that an estimated 92% of cancers caused by the human papilloma virus (HPV) could be prevented by the HPV vaccine. CDC recommends that all preteens get the multi-dose HPV vaccine when they are 11 or 12 years old – before they are ever exposed to the virus. However, according to the 2018 National Immunization Survey Teen, only 51% of all teens received all recommended doses of the HPV vaccine.

Domestic Preparedness and Global Health Security

Ebola

As the outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) continues, the number of Ebola cases has reached 3,313 and more than 2,204 deaths. To rapidly identify cases and prevent further spread of Ebola, CDC continues to work with the U.S. embassy in DRC to rapidly respond to “hotspots” where the security situation is permissible. CDC also continues to closely coordinate with partners across the Department of Health and Human Services on continuing efforts to fight this outbreak.

In June, CDC activated its Emergency Operations Center (EOC) to support the coordinated inter-agency response to the outbreak in eastern DRC.  As of December 13, 2019, CDC staff have conducted 573 deployments to the DRC, neighboring countries, and WHO headquarters. CDC has permanent staff in the three high-risk countries bordering the outbreak (South Sudan, Rwanda, Uganda), including staff in DRC.

DRC has more than 300 graduates of CDC’s Field Epidemiology and Laboratory Training Program who are playing a central role in this public health response.

2020: Looking Ahead

As 2020 approaches, CDC remains vigilant to combat these and other urgent threats. Health threats can arise at any time – at home or abroad – and CDC’s most important mission is always to protect the health of the American public from the unexpected.

To learn more about the work of CDC visit CDC.gov

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

CDC works 24/7 protecting America’s health, safety and security.

Whether diseases start at home or abroad, are curable or preventable, chronic or acute, or from human activity or deliberate attack, CDC responds to America’s most pressing health threats. CDC is headquartered in Atlanta and has experts located throughout the United States and the world.







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