Johnston, IA (December 16, 2010) - The Delta Dental of Iowa Foundation awarded $144,765 to 25 Iowa agencies to improve the oral health of Iowans through its mini-grant program.

The Foundation awards mini-grants twice a year in May and October.  Mini-grants are intended to support one-time oral health projects, such as workshops or conferences, or short-term projects of up to one-year in duration, such as a survey, data collection or research study. These grants are also used to stimulate long-term oral health projects and may be combined with funds from other sources.

"The Delta Dental of Iowa Foundation's mission is to support and improve the oral health of Iowans," said Donn Hutchins, president of the Delta Dental of Iowa Foundation.  "The mini-grant program is a great example of how the Foundation can support a variety of oral health projects throughout the state that make a measurable difference in the oral health of Iowans."

The agencies being awarded mini-grants by the Delta Dental of Iowa Foundation in 2010 include :

• Davenport, Edgerton Women's Health Center - $3,000 for "Start Them Young," oral health care for infants and toddlers.
• Quad Cities, Bethany for Children & Families - $9,000 for "Give Kids a Smile" dental program.
• Clinton & Jackson Counties, Visiting Nurse Services of Iowa - $3,000 for I-Smile^TM oral health project.
• Creston, Matura Action Corporation - $5,000 for sealant program equipment.
• Council Bluffs, Iowa Western Community College - $10,000 for "Smiling through Prevention" program.
• Des Moines, AIDS Project of Central Iowa - $5,500 for the "Living with HIV: Oral Care Case Management" program.
• Des Moines, Children and Families of Iowa - $6,000 for methamphetamine oral health education.
• Des Moines, Drake University Head Start - $3,000 for "Healthy Head Start Smiles" program.
• Des Moines, Mercy Foundation - $1,000 for "Keeping Smiles Bright" program.
• Des Moines, Visiting Nurse Services of Iowa - $4,000 for oral health supplies for I-Smile^TM "Summer Splash" and "Give Kids a Smile Day 2011" programs.
• Dubuque, Crescent Community Health Center - $3,000 for "Miles of Smiles" program.
• Forest City, Winnebago County Public Health - $500 for dental education and prevention program.
• Fort Dodge, Iowa Central Community College - $6,200 for preventive oral health projects.
• Glenwood, Mills County Public Health - $3,000 for "In the Family Way" program.
• Hiawatha, Hawkeye Area Community Action Program of Linn County - $1,500 for Head Start oral health project.
• Iowa City, Iowa Student Dental Association and Hispanic Dental Association - $6,000 to create pediatric educational oral health resource materials in Spanish.
• Iowa City, University of Iowa College of Dentistry - $3,500 for "Oh, Give Me a Home..." project, $6,500 for CDC's CVD/Oral Health/Tobacco cessation initiative, $10,000 for Special Health Care Needs dental flip chart project, and $3,729 for Pediatric Dentistry Residency program.
• Statewide, Iowa Department of Public Health - $9,900 for I-Smile™ outreach to low-income, pregnant women.
• Statewide, Iowa Dental Association - $10,000 for the 2010 Annual Conference Guest Lecture Series.
• Statewide, Iowa Dental Hygienist's Association - $3,000 for Iowa Dental Hygienist's Association annual session.
• Marshalltown, Mid-Iowa Community Action, Inc. - $6,291 for maternal and child health dental program.
• Mason City, Mercy Medical Center North Iowa - $10,000 for North Iowa Dental Clinic for the uninsured and underinsured.
• Mason City, North Iowa Community Action Organization - $1,500 for Family Health Center - oral health prevention and education.
• Ottumwa, River Hills Community Health Center - $9,645 for Ottumwa and Keokuk County Schools sealant and fluoride varnish program.
• Ottumwa, Iowa Rural Health Education Partnership (IRHEP) and South Central Area Health Education Center (SC Iowa AHEC) - $1,000 for "Power of Sour" program.

Delta Dental of Iowa is the largest and most experienced provider of dental benefits in the state. As a not-for-profit, Delta Dental of Iowa invests in oral health projects through the Delta Dental of Iowa Foundation that focus on access to care, prevention, education and research. The Iowa company is a member of the Delta Dental Plans Association, a national organization of not-for-profit Delta Dental plans. The national association is the largest dental benefits carrier in the nation providing coverage to 54 million people in more than 93,600 employer groups.

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REID, MCCONNELL, BAUCUS, GRASSLEY HAIL SENATE PASSAGE OF BILL TO ENSURE SENIORS, MILITARY FAMILIES CONTINUE ACCESS TO HIGH-QUALITY DOCTORS

Senate Leaders' Bill Would Fix Medicare Physician Payment Formula to Ensure Doctors Can Continue Seeing Medicare, Tricare Patients

Washington, DC - Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.) and Ranking Member Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) today applauded Senate passage of legislation extending through 2011 a fix to the Medicare physician payment formula to ensure seniors and military families can be confident they will be able to continue seeing their doctors.  The legislation would ensure Medicare and Tricare, the health care program for active-duty service members, National Guard and Reserve members, retirees and their families, will continue to pay physicians who participate in those programs at current levels.

"This bipartisan agreement gives peace of mind to seniors and military families in Nevada and across the nation," said Senator Reid. "We ensured that our seniors and veterans can continue seeing their doctors and getting the treatment they need.  I appreciate the leadership of Chairman Baucus and Ranking Member Grassley for leading the effort to work across the aisle and reach this common-sense solution."

"I'm encouraged that we were able to work together in a bipartisan way and protect access to care for America's 45 million Medicare beneficiaries in a fiscally responsible manner," said Senator McConnell. "This bipartisan accomplishment will help ensure that Kentucky's seniors and military personnel and their families won't be denied access to their doctors as a result of inaction in Washington. I'm pleased that the White House is supportive and I hope our colleagues in the House will take up this measure and pass it promptly. "

"We worked together on this longer-term solution to give seniors and military families in Montana and across the country the peace of mind of knowing they still will be able to see their doctors and get the medicine they need," said Senator Baucus. "This bill provides the security patients deserve and the certainty doctors need, ensuring seniors and military families have access to the doctors they know and trust."

"With a double-digit payment cut, some doctors would stop seeing Medicare and Tricare patients," Senator Grassley said. "This bipartisan legislation will help to ensure that older Americans and military families can continue to get quality health care."

The bill, the Medicare and Medicaid Extenders Act of 2010, would avoid a 25-percent cut to Medicare physician payments under the Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR) formula that would otherwise go into effect on January 1, 2011.  The proposal also includes extensions of other expiring health care provisions, including protections for rural hospitals and doctors, Transitional Medical Assistance and the Special Diabetes Program.  The legislation would be paid for by modifying the policy regarding overpayments of the health care affordability tax credit.  This policy does not change the tax credits for which people are eligible based on their income.  Instead, the proposal would change the way people pay back overpayments when they have received more credit than they are eligible for because, for example, they earned more money than expected in a given year.

Under current law there is a flat cap of $250 for individuals and $400 for families on the amount of the health care affordability tax credit people are required to pay back when they received an overpayment.  This payback cap is the same for people earning 160 percent of the federal poverty level and 360 percent of the federal poverty level.  Under this proposal for correcting overpayments, the cap on the payback amount would be on a sliding scale based on the income of the recipient of the tax credit, making the policy fairer to both recipients and all taxpayers.

The Finance Committee has jurisdiction over the Medicare program and the physician payment formula, which also sets payment levels for the Tricare program.  A summary and legislative text of the Medicare and Medicaid Extenders Act of 2010 can be found on the Finance Committee website http://finance.senate.gov/legislation/.  The legislation must now be passed by the House and signed into law by the President.

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Davenport, Iowa - Mississippi Valley Regional Blood Center will begin welcoming blood donors to its new Donor Center in Moline with a ribbon-cutting ceremony scheduled for 12:30 p.m. on Monday, November 15. The new Donor Center is located at 3600 16th Street in Moline (at the southeast corner of 16th St. and 36th Ave.). Blood donors will join MVRBC staff and officials from the Quad Cities Chamber of Commerce in officially opening the site.

Previously, the Blood Center operated Donor Centers that were located about four miles apart along Hwy. 5 (John Deere Road / Blackhawk Road) Moline and Rock Island. The new site is located about halfway between those locations, which are now closed. "Our new site has more space, more donor beds and more appointment slots," said Kirby Winn, Director of Public Relations. "It all adds up to more opportunities for blood donors to help patients at local hospitals."

Donors may schedule appointments by contacting MVRBC at (563) 359-5401 or online at www.bloodcenter.org. Hours of operation at the new location are:

Mondays & Thursdays: 10:30 a.m.-7 p.m.

Tuesdays & Wednesdays: 7 a.m.-7 p.m.

Fridays & Saturdays: 7-11:30 a.m.

The community is invited to attend an Open House at the new location from 8:30 - 11 a.m. on Saturday, December 4. Coffee, hot chocolate and bagels will be provided during the Open House, which will give current and prospective blood donors an opportunity to tour the location and learn about blood donation and the Blood Center's role in the community.

MVRBC is the provider of blood and blood components used for transfusion at all Quad City Area Hospitals. Working together with volunteer donors, MVRBC provides more than 25,000 units of blood and components each year to Genesis Medical Center hospitals in Davenport, DeWitt and Silvis; Hammond-Henry Hospital in Geneseo; Mercy Medical Center in Clinton; Select Specialty Hospital in Davenport and Trinity Regional Health System hospitals in Bettendorf, Moline, Muscatine and Rock Island. From its headquarters in Davenport, MVRBC serves a total of 75 hospitals in Illinois, Iowa, Missouri and Wisconsin. For additional information, see www.bloodcenter.org.

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Sen. Chuck Grassley, ranking member of the Finance Committee, with jurisdiction over key federal health care programs, made the following comment on a news report that health care costs will go up for AARP employees.

"AARP supported a partisan health care overhaul that cut Medicare by almost $500 billion. That will result in less choice, fewer benefits and decreased access to care for millions of its members. But now we hear that AARP's members aren't the only ones who will bear the brunt of the new health care law. Like companies across the country, AARP is shifting more costs onto employees in reaction to the health care overhaul. Despite their employer's support, AARP employees are learning that the health care law is not going to address the top priority of making health care coverage less expensive.  Supporters of the law tend to have tunnel vision and focus on how it will affect narrow groups of people, rather than recognizing that most people will just end up paying more.  But the big picture is clear.  Employers and employees nationwide will pay more for health care because of the new law."

A news article from the Associated Press follows.

Citing health overhaul, AARP hikes employee costs

By RICARDO ALONSO-ZALDIVAR, Associated Press Ricardo Alonso-zaldivar, Associated Press 2 hrs 52 mins ago

WASHINGTON - AARP's endorsement helped secure passage of President Barack Obama's health care overhaul. Now the seniors' lobby is telling its employees their insurance costs will rise partly as a result of the law.

In an e-mail to employees, AARP says health care premiums will increase by 8 percent to 13 percent next year because of rapidly rising medical costs.

And AARP adds that it's changing copayments and deductibles to avoid a 40 percent tax on high-cost health plans that takes effect in 2018 under the law. Aerospace giant Boeing also has cited the tax in asking its workers to pay more. Shifting costs to employees lowers the value of a health care plan and acts like an escape hatch from the tax.

"Most plan co-pays and deductibles have been modified," Jennifer Hodges, AARP's director of compensation and benefits, wrote employees in an Oct. 25 e-mail. "Plan value changes were necessary not only from a cost management standpoint but also to ensure that AARP's plans fall below the threshold for high-cost group plans under health care reform."

AARP officials said medical inflation is the main reason employee costs will be going up. The health care law is "a small part," said David Certner, legislative affairs director.

Although the tax on so-called "Cadillac" health care plans doesn't take effect for years, employers are already beginning to assess their potential exposure because it is hefty: at 40 percent of the value above $10,200 for individual coverage and $27,500 for a family plan. The tax is intended as a savings measure, to prod employers and workers into more cost-efficient plans.

Certner said AARP's plans are currently under the threshold for the tax. "We intend to stay below those thresholds," he said. "It's not in anybody's interest to move above those thresholds, not the employees' nor the employer's."

AARP officials say the organization's public policy recommendations are made independently of other considerations, including its range of business ventures, from travel, to insurance, to publishing.

The 40 million-strong AARP represents people 50 and older, including retirees on Medicare and Social Security. Its endorsement of health care overhaul came at a critical time last year, days before a close vote on the House floor.

"The impact on AARP employees is not a factor at all in our policy making, which is directed at the impact on our membership and on all older Americans," said Certner.

About 4,500 people are covered by AARP's plans, including employees, dependents and retirees.

"We supported the (health care) package because it contained incredibly important protections for our younger members, who often have problems getting access to care," said spokesman Jim Dau. "And because it helps our older members in Medicare with important new benefits."

Starting in 2014, the overhaul law prohibits insurance companies from turning down people with medical problems, and limits what they can charge older customers. It gradually closes the coverage gap in the Medicare prescription benefit, and improves coverage for preventive care.

The Obama administration says changes required by the law so far have only had a minimal, single-digit impact on premiums. Many benefits experts agree with that assessment but point out that the increases come on top of untamed health care inflation.

AARP warned its employees that more cost-shifting could be in store. "AARP intends to make similar changes, as necessary, in the future to avoid the (health plan) tax," said Hodges' e-mail.

Current forecasts are that the overhaul will only have a small impact on job-based coverage, slightly reducing the number of people who would otherwise be covered by employer plans. Those workers would have access to taxpayer-subsidized coverage through new insurance markets.