News Bites from CDA Knowledge Networks – 2021/07/28

Alberta government requests revised University of Alberta tuition hike proposals, citing need for more consultation. edmontonjournal.com, July 27: …The University of Alberta Students’ Union has said the university’s proposals would see increases for new students … tuition regulations dictate that an institution’s average tuition and apprenticeship fee increases cannot go up by more than seven per cent each year for the next three years, and tuition for any single program can’t go up by more than 10 per cent each year. Any “exceptional” tuition increases need to be approved by Advanced Education Minister Demetrios Nicolaides. Read more

Ottawa's blunder on business transfer taxes could cost billions. financialpost.com, July 27 [OPINION]: In a sudden reversal, Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland announced last week that the government will not, after all, refuse to enforce a private member’s bill — Bill C-208 — related to transfers of family businesses that became law in late June. Her announcement was praised by business advocacy groups who say that intergenerational transfers are a long-standing problem that should have been addressed years ago. But the bill creates a gaping new tax-avoidance loophole that will now be used by many private corporations, large and small. Read more

Sask. dental public health expert debunks myths, misinformation about community water fluoridation. leaderpost.com, July 27: "It's just like the chlorine in drinking water. In the right concentration it is protective because it purifies the water, but in a certain concentration chlorine gas has been used in wars because it's deadly." Read more

ADA supports Health Enterprise Zones Act. ada.org, July 26: Bill aims to attract more dentists to underserved communities, improve access. Read more

California health care workers must show proof of COVID-19 vaccination; unvaccinated workers must get tested regularly. cda.org, July 26: The statewide policy will take effect Monday, Aug. 9, with full compliance required by Aug. 23. CDA [California Dental Association] is working with state officials to clarify the requirements for dental practices, including how COVID-19 testing will be conducted and who will pay for it. Read more

Your dentist can see you remotely. northcarolinanews.org, July 27: North Carolina lawmakers establish standards for the practice of teledentistry. Gov. Roy Cooper signed the bill into law last week. Read more

Data from the dental office, an alternative inflation indicator. msn.com (CNBC), July 24: Vijay Sikka, founder and CEO of Sikka Software, joins Kelly Evans on 'The Exchange' to discuss two inflation indicators, dental inflation and consumer confidence in medical offices. Sikka sees high confidence and inflation still moving up, he tells Evans. Watch 3:38

Fluoride law ensures Iowa citizens understand water changes. westport-news.com, July 25 A new Iowa law that went into effect July 1 requires public water system operators to give residents at least a 90-day notice before they stop adding fluoride to drinking water. Read more

Coronavirus: What's happening in Canada and around the world Wednesday. cbc.ca, July 28: COVID-19 spreading faster in Alberta than during peak of 3rd wave. B.C. looks to improve lower vaccination rates in the Interior as potential 4th wave looms. Mass vaccination centres starting to close in some Canadian provinces, but the push to get more doses is still on. U.S. CDC calls for masks in areas of high COVID-19 transmission, even for fully vaccinated. Tokyo reports 3,177 new COVID-19 cases — a new single-day high. Read more

Trudeau mum on launch of vaccine passport but vows system will be 'simple and efficient'. ctvnews.ca, July 27: Prime Minister Justin Trudeau skirted around questions about when Canadians can expect to be equipped with formal proof of their COVID-19 vaccine status for travel abroad but vowed that the system will be both “simple and efficient.” Read more

Government of Canada funds two new projects to encourage COVID-19 vaccination in youth. canada.ca, July 27: The Honourable Patty Hajdu, Minister of Health, announced two new projects aimed at youth that will receive funding through the Immunization Partnership Fund (IPF). These projects will promote the importance of vaccinating against COVID-19 to youth aged 12 and over, parents and caretakers, and teachers through school-based interventions and community-based outreach. Read more

Alberta won't offer 3rd doses to travellers whose COVID vaccination status isn't recognized. cbc.ca, July 28: ...Tom McMillan, a spokesperson for Alberta Health, said that the province isn't currently offering third doses to people who the province considers fully vaccinated but who are looking to travel. Read more

Businesses with high COVID-19 transmission risk should require vaccines: B.C.’s top doctor. globalnews.ca, July 27: Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry is encouraging owners of nightclubs and other businesses with high risk of COVID-19 transmission to require vaccination for entry. British Columbia will not require vaccines for public services, but private businesses can if they wish. Read more

'Now is the time' for students aged 12 to 17 to get vaccinated before school, expert says. ctvnews.ca, July 27: With September around the corner, some doctors are urging parents of children aged 12 to 17 to get vaccinated in time to build full immunity before school starts again. Read more

Tens of thousands of Quebec students still not vaccinated against COVID-19, some refusing altogether. montreal.ctvnews.ca, July 27: Data from public health shows 30,000 high school students in Montreal have yet to receive the first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, while others are flat out refusing to get it. Read more

Health Canada considers approving Sanofi’s COVID vaccine. ipolitics.ca, July 27: Health Canada is considering approving a COVID-19 vaccine made by French pharmaceutical giant Sanofi Pasteur Limited. Sanofi, one of the world’s largest vaccine manufacturers, applied for approval of its vaccine on July 21. Read more

Canada now has enough COVID-19 vaccine doses to fully vaccinate all eligible citizens: PM. ctvnews.ca, July 27: Canada currently has enough doses of COVID-19 vaccines in the country to fully vaccinate every eligible person over the age of 12, with more than 66 million doses received as of Tuesday. Read more

90% of Canada’s COVID-19 cases are among unvaccinated, feds say. globalnews.ca, July 26: “Since the start of the vaccination campaign on December 14, 2020, the majority (89.8 per cent) of cases being reported to PHAC were among those who were unvaccinated,” the country’s latest epidemiology report said. Read more

Ottawa spent hundreds of millions on rapid COVID tests. It looks like most of it has been wasted. thestar.com, July 26 [EDITORIAL]: We learned last week…that Ontario taxpayers are almost certainly out close to $10 million because of a failed attempt to develop a provincially made COVID testing kit. Read more

Sask. looking at extra vaccine dose for AstraZeneca recipients: health minister. thetarphoenix.com, July 27: "It’s not imminent that this has to be done immediately, but it’s something we could look at," Merriman said. Quebec announced Monday that it would offer a dose of either Moderna or Pfizer vaccine to residents who received the AstraZeneca shot because some countries do not recognize it, or may not recognize a mix of AstraZeneca and another vaccine. Read more

Regina protests shift from masks to all-embracing conspiracy thinking. leaderpost.com, July 27: What do fluoride, 5G technology, vaccine passports and atmospheric haze have in common? For most of us, nothing. But for some of those assembled along Victoria Avenue during the Regina Farmers Market on Saturday, they are pieces of a puzzle leading to an all-powerful cabal bent on sterilizing, starving or killing millions. Read more

Study suggests people who develop severe COVID-19 have blunted antiviral responses in the nose, throat. ctvnews.ca, July 23: A small preliminary study by researchers at Boston Children’s Hospital suggests that people who develop severe COVID-19 have noticeably blunted antiviral responses in the nose and throat, where the body first encounters the virus. Read more

Toronto hospital network to require regular COVID tests for unvaccinated staff. windsorstar.com, July 26: Staff must report whether they have been vaccinated against COVID-19, if they have a medical exemption, if they’ve declined to share their status or if they won’t be vaccinated. Employees who aren’t vaccinated… will be given at-home COVID-19 tests to be completed and reported 48 hours before coming to work. Read more

Should COVID-19 vaccines be mandatory for healthcare workers? Experts weigh in. globalnews.ca, July 25: Several European countries have made COVID-19 vaccines mandatory for their healthcare workers – and now there are growing calls to do the same in Canada as the country slowly reopens. Read more

Are fake vaccine cards being used to enter Canada? globalnews.ca, July 23: The debate surrounding the need for COVID-19 vaccine passports continues, but it seems some people are already looking for ways around the system. There are multiple reports of fake vaccine cards and passports emerging online — sold on the dark web for hundreds of dollars, and some as low as “the price of peanuts.” Read more

Officials say 90% of population needs vaccine to reach herd immunity. cbc.ca, July 26: Speed of vaccination has slowed in Ontario as cities try to reach remaining unvaccinated residents. Read more

Quebec's vaccine lottery kicks off to boost lagging vaccination rates ahead of return to school. cbc.ca, July 26: …The Quebec government has said a normal return to school, with no physical distancing in place, is only possible if 75 per cent of student-aged youths are vaccinated, the majority with two doses. Read more

Covid-19 global updates. washingtonpost.com, July 28: Britain likely to reopen borders to fully vaccinated visitors from U.S., Europe. Australian officials in Sydney extended the city’s lockdown by another four weeks Wednesday, citing a growing outbreak of the more contagious delta variant that first flared in June. Amid widespread vaccine hesitancy. Read more

The science didn't change, the virus did, Fauci says as U.S. CDC updates mask guidance. ctvnews.ca, July 28: The change in CDC guidance recommending all Americans wear a mask indoors in areas with high COVID-19 transmission is a sign of the change the Delta variant has carved into the pandemic landscape. Read more

The new mask logic. axios.com, July 28: The Biden administration is essentially asking vaccinated Americans to help save the unvaccinated from themselves. America's "pandemic of the unvaccinated" has gotten bad enough that vaccine mandates are starting to catch on, and masks are coming back — in some cases, even for the vaccinated. Read more

Pfizer claims 3rd dose 'strongly' boosts protection against Delta variant. ctvnews.ca, July 28: …The data posted online…suggest that antibody levels against the Delta variant in people ages 18 to 55 who receive a third dose of vaccine are greater than five-fold than following a second dose. Among people ages 65 to 85, the Pfizer data suggest that antibody levels against the Delta variant after receiving a third dose of vaccine are greater than 11-fold than following a second dose. Read more

VA requires COVID-19 vaccination for health care workers. abcnews.go.com, July 26: The Department of Veterans Affairs has became the first major federal agency to require health care workers to get COVID-19 vaccines. Read more

California, NYC will require public workers to get vaccinated or face weekly COVID tests. cbc.ca, July 26: …While it isn't a vaccine mandate — no workers will be forced to take a shot — officials hope the inconvenience and discomfort of weekly tests will persuade many to overcome a reluctance to get inoculated. Read more

Moderna expanding kids vaccine study to better assess safety. ctvnews.ca, July 26: Moderna said Monday it plans to expand the size of its COVID-19 vaccine study in younger children to better detect rare side effects, such as a type of heart inflammation recently flagged by U.S. health authorities. The company said it is in talks with the Food and Drug Administration to enroll more study participants under age 12. Read more

Leading medical groups urge mandatory vaccinations for all health care workers. nbcnews.ca, July 26: Requiring shots would be "the logical fulfillment of the ethical commitment" to all patients, according to the groups. Read more

Fauci says U.S. headed in 'wrong direction' on coronavirus. ctvnews.ca, July 25: We're going in the wrong direction," said Dr. Anthony Fauci, describing himself as "very frustrated." He said recommending that the vaccinated wear masks is "under active consideration" by the government's leading public health officials. Also, booster shots may be suggested for people with suppressed immune systems who have been vaccinated, Fauci said. Read more

Israel weighing COVID-19 booster shots for over 60s before U.S. FDA approval. ctvnews.ca, July 26: Israel is considering giving a third shot of the Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine to its elderly population even before FDA approval in order to help fend off the Delta coronavirus variant, a health official said on Monday. U.S. and European Union authorities are considering whether booster shots are needed for specific risk groups. Read more

Opinion: The failure of Canada's pandemic early warning system — and how to fix it. nationalpost.com, July 28: In responding to COVID-19, the system failed — or, more charitably, had little chance of success from the outset. The recently released final report of the independent panel reviewing the Global Public Health Intelligence Network (GPHIN) — Canada’s pandemic early warning system — is a harbinger of the challenges to come once we turn our full attention to preventing future outbreaks of disease and other biosecurity threats. Read more

Without fiscal course correction, Ottawa could be posting deficits until 2070, PBO says. nationalpost.com, July 28: New permanent federal spending programs and drastically weakened fiscal positions in the provinces has substantially extended the timeline for a return to balance, the report says. Read more

Toronto A.I. meets Boston biotech: Deep Genomics raises $180 million to automate drug discovery. bostonglobe.com, July 28: Brendan Frey, the founder and chief executive of Deep Genomics, thinks the wrong people are developing new drugs to treat genetic diseases. In fact, he doesn’t think humans should be doing most of the work. Read more

Liberal health plan calls for mental health walk-in clinics, more doctor recruitment support. cbc.ca, July 27 [Nova Scotia Votes]: All 3 major parties have now released details about their plans for health care. A Liberal government would revamp doctor recruitment, create walk-in mental health clinics and increase the number of nurses and midwives in Nova Scotia if re-elected, Leader Iain Rankin said Tuesday as he released his party's health-care platform. Read more

NDP leader promises to end boil-water advisories in Indigenous communities. tbnewswatch.com, July 27: Jagmeet Singh said it was shocking to hear stories on Monday from Neskantaga First Nation youth who have never known life with a promise of clean drinking water from the taps in their homes. Read more

Feds to spend $3.1M on virtual health care for Nunavummiut. nunatsiaq.com, July 27: …The money is intended to go towards secure messaging and file transfers, secure video conferencing and technologies to monitor patients remotely. Read more

COVID-19 no longer top issue facing Canadians ahead of possible election: poll. globalnews.ca, July 26: ...According to the poll, the current top-of-mind issues Canadians are now thinking about the most are healthcare, affordability and cost of living, climate change and the economy — largely remaining the same from two years ago. Read more

Mary Simon officially becomes Canada's first Inuk Governor General. cbc.ca, July 26: Mary Simon has officially become Canada's first Indigenous Governor General. Simon — an Inuk from Kuujjuaq in northeastern Quebec — was appointed by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to fill the role earlier this month and took her oaths this morning in a ceremony at the Senate chambers in Ottawa. Read more

Young lured to tobacco addiction via e-cigarettes - WHO. reuter.com, July 27: The tobacco industry's sleek marketing is attracting youngsters to e-cigarettes which can lead to tobacco addiction, despite claims by some executives that they aim to solve the smoking epidemic, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Tuesday. Read more

Facebook to limit ads children see after revelations Australian alcohol companies can reach teens. theguardian.com, July 27: Advertisers on Instagram, Facebook and Messenger will no longer be able to market to under 18s based on their interests. Read more

SmileDirectClub presses antitrust appeal against CA dental board. reuters.com, July 26: Foley & Lardner partner, arguing at 9th Circuit, said California board threatened by new business model. California state lawyer said board had done its "duty" to investigate licensing issue. Read more

‘Urgent need’ for age restrictions on TikTok vaping videos, Australian study finds. theguardian.com, July 27: Researchers find 63% of e-cigarette content on video-sharing platform portrays vaping positively. Read more

Walmart Is Rapidly Expanding Its Presence In Healthcare. forbes.com, July 23: Retail giant Walmart is a force to reckon with, based not only on its expansive market reach, but also given its commitment to innovation in the consumer services space. Walmart’s recent ventures in healthcare is one such example of innovation, as the company is attempting to become a staple in the multibillion dollar healthcare services industry. Read more

Positive future orientation and strong parental support linked with lower risk of youth vaping. news-medical.net, July 26: ...The research, published today in the journal Pediatrics, suggests that strategies to prevent youth vaping may be different from what works to dissuade youth from smoking cigarettes. Read more

Marlboro Maker CEO Says The Company Plans To Stop Selling Smokes In The U.K. npr.org, July 26: The top executive for tobacco giant Philip Morris International says the company will stop selling cigarettes in the United Kingdom in the next 10 years. … The development is just part of Philip Morris International's reinvention as it abandons traditional tobacco products. Read more

Dalhousie University – Current course offerings

McGill University – Continuing dental education

Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry University – Continuing professional development

Université Laval – Formation continue

University of Manitoba – Continuing professional development

Université de Montréal – Formation dentaire continue

University of Alberta – Program and courses

University of British Columbia – Calendar of courses

University of Saskatchewan – Continuing professional dental education

University of Toronto – Continuing dental education

2021

September 9-11: California Dental Association (CDA) – Presents the Art & Science of Dentistry. Read more

September 25-26: 2021 Virtual Saskatchewan Oral Health Conference. Read more

September 26-29: FDI World Dental Congress | Special Edition | Sydney 2021 Virtual. Read more

September 30 – October 2: Canadian Academy of Restorative Dentistry and Prosthodontics (CARDP) 28th Annual Scientific Meeting. Read more

October 15-19: Les Journées dentaires internationales du Québec 2021. Read more

Please let us know about upcoming continuing education meetings that could be of interest to Canadian dentists by emailing us at oasisdiscussions@cda-adc.ca

2022

March 10-12: Pacific Dental Conference in conjunction with the Canadian Dental Association, Vancouver, BC. Read more

May 5-7: ASM22 – The Ontario Dental Association’s Annual Spring Meeting. Save the date!