A Full Day on Capitol Hill 

The day started early. Our delegation, representing congressional districts across New Jersey, arrived at the Hart Senate Office Building for a constituent coffee with Senator Andy Kim. It was one of two meetings where we sat across from the member themselves rather than staff, and the Senator engaged with the issues directly, asking his office to follow up on what the cuts to HRSA, CDC, and CMS mean specifically for New Jersey patients and how the ERISA loophole erodes patient-provider trust. 

From there, the delegation fanned out across the Hill in coordinated groups, moving through eleven meetings total before regrouping at the end of the day. Hart, Cannon, Longworth, Rayburn. By 4:30 PM, we covered the full map. Unfortunately, Congressman Gottheimer's team was not available, nor was Congressman Kean's. 

One of the final meetings of the day was with Congressman Rob Menendez, and it was one of the most substantive conversations we had. The Congressman engaged on all three of our priorities and left the meeting having committed to all three. That does not happen by accident. It happens because the people in that room knew what they were talking about and why it mattered. 

Who We Met and What We Asked For 

Our delegation met with offices representing nearly every corner of New Jersey, through 10 Congressional Districts to the two Senate seats, across both parties. In addition to Senator Kim and Congressman Menendez, we met with staff from the offices of Senator Booker and Representatives Watson Coleman, Conaway, Pou, McIver, Chris Smith, Pallone, Van Drew, and Norcross. 

We came with three clear asks, each grounded in real policy and real patient impact. 

The REDI Act (H.R. 2028/S. 942) 

Seventy-eight percent of dental school graduates are starting their careers with more than $312,000 in student loan debt. The Resident Education Deferred Interest Act would allow dental and medical residents to defer federal loan payments during residency and pause interest accrual during that period. High debt shapes where dentists end up practicing. If we want providers in underserved communities, we have to stop making it financially impossible to get there. Congressman Van Drew committed to cosponsoring the bill. Congressman Menendez and Congressman Norcross both committed to signing on as well. 

These conversations may be brief, but they’re far from scripted. Each one is thoughtfully prepared to ensure the most important points are clear, relevant, and impactful.

ERISA Reform and the IDA Act (H.R. 7931) 

Nearly half of all Americans with dental benefits are covered through self-funded employer plans governed by ERISA. Insurance carriers have used federal preemption as a shield to avoid state patient protection laws, creating a two-tier system where protections depend not on patient needs but on how a patient's employer structured their plan. The Improving Dental Administration Act, co-introduced by New Jersey's own Congressman Van Drew and Congressman Conaway, would close that loophole. Watson Coleman's office asked hard questions about the insurance industry pushback. We answered them. Congressman Menendez committed to coordinating with Congressman Conaway's office on ERISA reform. Congressman Norcross indicated he would do the same once he received more information from Conaway's office. 

Learn more about how this legislation came to fruition.  

Protecting the Federal Oral Health Infrastructure 

The CDC Division of Oral Health was significantly downgraded in April 2025. The HRSA Chief Dental Officer position was eliminated the same month. The CMS Chief Dental Officer seat has been vacant. These are not just organizational charts. These are the positions responsible for community water fluoridation support, infection control guidance that state dental boards rely on, workforce training pipelines, and coverage policy across Medicaid, CHIP, and Medicare. Senator Kim's office asked us to document specifically what was lost and what the gap means for patients. Congressman Menendez committed to signing a letter urging CMS to fill and retain the Chief Dental Officer position. Congressman Norcross committed to signing as well. 

Dentists are critical in defending the Public Health Infrastructure responsible for the programs that keep dentistry connected to public health! 

Seasoned Advocates and First-Timers, Side by Side 

What made this year's delegation work was not any single meeting. It was the mix of people in the room.  

Some of our members have been making this trip for years. They know how to read a staffer, when to push and when to listen, and how to translate a policy ask into a patient story in thirty seconds. That experience is irreplaceable.  

But this year we also had members who were new to ADA's Lobby Day. Dentists and students who had never walked into a congressional office before. And without exception, they brought something just as valuable: authentic, firsthand knowledge of what these issues look like from the chair. A story about a resident drowning in debt who almost did not take a job in rural or urban practice. A patient who lost access because of a self-funded plan loophole. A community of children that relies on leadership to create strategies to prevent rampant tooth decay because there are no other preventive resources available. 

Those stories landed. They always do. 

What Came Out of It 

We left the Hill with real commitments. Congressman Van Drew, one of the bill's own co-introducers, signed onto the REDI Act. Congressman Menendez committed to all three of our priorities. Congressman Norcross committed to the REDI Act and advocating for restoring public health infrastructure, with ERISA to follow. Multiple other offices expressed genuine openness and asked for follow-up materials, which the ADA advocacy team and NJDA are now coordinating together.  

We followed up with every office within 48 hours. Every staff member who sat with us has now heard from us again, by name, referencing their specific questions. The ADA team will take it from there. That is how you build relationships both locally and across the country, not just visits. 

Why This Work Matters 

Oral health policy does not move on its own. It moves because dentists show up, repeatedly, and make the case in terms that connect policy to people. The REDI Act will not pass because it is a good idea. It will pass because the dentists who lived that debt walked into congressional offices and explained it in a way that a staffer remembered when it came time to make a recommendation. 

ERISA reform will not happen because the legal argument is airtight. It will happen because New Jersey dentists and others around the country kept showing up until enough members understood what their constituents were losing.  

This year's delegation understood that. Every one of them. 

The REDI Act will not pass because it is a good idea. It will pass because the dentists who lived that debt showed up and told their story. 

This is the work. And New Jersey showed up for it. 

See You Next Year 

We will be back next year. In the meantime, keep an eye out for the NJDA Lobby Day in Trenton, NJ coming soon. In the meantime, please join us at the NJDA Annual Convention, where we will continue this work and celebrate the colleagues who make it possible. And if NJDPAC is something you have been thinking about, the NJDPAC Happy Hour: Power of the PAC Reception at the convention is the place to start that conversation. 

The doors we knocked on in Washington were opened by the relationships we built at home. Let's keep building them.