Mercury Amalgam Update: Pennsylvania "Amalgam Wars" Against Disabled Children

From the desk of Charlie Brown, General Counsel, Consumers for Dental Choice:

Pennsylvania Dental Association planned "Amalgam Wars"

Against Children for a Year

The evidence suggests that the American Dental Association’s sixth largest chapter, Pennsylvania, has been planning its assault on the rights of disabled children for the past year.

In his “president’s message” dated 13 May 2009, Dr. David Tecosky, former president of the Philadelphia County Dental Society (PCDS) boasted about the association’s elaborate preparations for fighting the “amalgam wars” -- which means, as shown by the behavior and policies of this rogue dental society, a war against the children of America. In his speech, Tocosky announced that he and PCDS board member Dr. Andrew Mramor had received “Spokesperson Training” from the Pennsylvania Dental Association (PDA) in order to more effectively wage the “amalgam wars” against children. Mramor runs a clinic in heavily-minority North Philadelphia, and with encouragement from the dental associations, pressures parents to sign a consent form permitting dentists to subject their children to amalgam (the form even prohibits parents from altering any of its provisions). Being well trained by the Pennsylvania Dental Association, and testifying on its behalf in a written statement dated 11 February 2010, Mramor admitted that he has turned away disabled children as patients for the sole reason that the parent or guardian refuses to consent to amalgam – he won’t so much as clean their teeth if they don’t submit to mercury exposure. In that statement, on the joint letterhead of the Pennsylvania and Philadelphia dental associations, Mramor smugly adds that such parents are unlikely to find another dentist for their children.

On 23 February 2010, we asked the Attorney General of Pennsylvania to open a civil rights investigation of the Pennsylvania Dental Association and the Philadelphia County Dental Society for strong-arming parents and patients into submitting to amalgam. To clarify our complaint to the Attorney General, we filed a supplement explaining that Mramor is a PCDS board member and has been especially trained by the PDA as its “spokesperson” on amalgam. We also forwarded a copy of the dental association-endorsed consent form that forces parents to choose: mercury fillings or no dental care.

To our friends in, or with ties to, theKeystone State:

If you haven’t done so already, please write Attorney General Thomas Corbett, and ask him to investigate the PA Dental Association for strong-arming the parents of children with disabilities into “consenting” to mercury fillings.

Email: civilrights@attorneygeneral.gov

Mailing Address: 16th Floor, Strawberry Square, Harrisburg PA 17120

Fax: 717-787-8242

Charlie Brown

8 March 2010

PS----Freya Koss, frekoss@aol.com, spearheaded the adoption of the Philadelphia fact sheet law and has been leading the charge on behalf of the children of Philly.

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OC