A coalition of 10 dental organizations has voiced its support for the continued use of dental amalgam in a letter to the U.S. government in anticipation of a United Nations meeting considering a ban on its future usage, the ADA News reported.
The fourth session of the U.N. Environment Programme (UNEP) Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee, which takes place June 27-July 2 in Uruguay, will continue work on a legally binding ruling on mercury. The final drafting meeting will take place in Geneva in January 2013. A subsequent diplomatic meeting in Japan will open the prepared document for signatures.
The letter, sent June 4 to the U.S. Department of State, was signed by the ADA, Academy of General Dentistry, American Academy of Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology, American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry, American Academy of Periodontology, American Association of Endodontists, American Association of Orthodontists, American Association of Public Health Dentistry, Association of State and Territorial Dental Directors, and International Association for Dental Research.
The letter also urged the U.S. to insist that the agreement include language calling for increased oral disease prevention efforts, amalgam alternative research, and amalgam environmental impact mitigation.