Colorado Dental Association

The Colorado Dental Association (CDA) is the professional membership organization for Colorado dentists, affiliated with the American Dental Association. CDA states its mission as fostering "the success of a diverse membership" while advancing "the oral health of the public," and describes its vision as being the recognized leading advocate for oral health in Colorado.

CDA is governed by a House of Delegates and Board of Trustees, with ten local component dental societies across the state and dedicated councils for membership, government relations, finance, new dentists, and peer review/ethics. Its Government Relations Council and two political-giving committees (CODPAC and the Small Donor Committee) support legislative advocacy at the State Capitol.

Recent advocacy

• HB-1070, signed by Governor Polis, requires that dentists be able to opt in to leased insurance networks rather than being enrolled in them without consent
• CDA highlights that 44 states, including Colorado, have "non-covered services" laws that prevent insurance plans from dictating a provider's fee for procedures the plan doesn't cover

The CDA Foundation, the association's 501(c)(3) affiliate, awards grant funding twice a year (deadlines March 15 and September 1) to Colorado nonprofit dental organizations working to expand access to care, and provides scholarships to University of Colorado School of Dental Medicine students.

CDA also operates a Patient-Dentist Mediation Program for treatment-related disputes involving CDA-member dentists, and maintains a public "Find a Dentist" directory and low-cost care resources for patients.

More information is available at cdaonline.org.