FRANKFORT — A bill that would make water fluoridation optional in Kentucky, which supporters praise as a way to ensure local control, passed out of the House Local Government Committee Wednesday despite opposition from several health organizations.  House Bill 103 would leave the decision on whe ther to add fluoride to water up to the local water systems’ governing bodies. The bill, which has been filed for several years but hasn’t passed both chambers, has more than 30 cosponsors. It passed the committee 13-4 and can go to the House floor.  Rep. Mark Hart, R-Falmouth, said the key change this year is an added clause granting water districts immunity from civil actions related to their decision.  “I just want to emphasize to everybody,” Hart said. “This bill does not ban fluoride. It takes away the state unfunded mandate. It makes it local control.”   Kentucky requires water utilities serving more than 3,000 customers to add low levels of fluoride to drinking water which, according to the National Institutes of Health, helps prevent cavities and tooth decay.  Jack Kall, a Louisville dentist and the executive chair of the International Academy of Oral Medicine and Toxicology, spoke in favor of the bill, saying if people don’t want fluoride, “you’re kind of stuck.”   “There’s this risk,” Kall said while citing research showing drinking water containing more than 1.5 milligrams of fluoride per liter is associated with lower IQ in children. The standard level for drinking water is 0.7 per liter.  “And even though we don’t have all the answers, when there’s that kind of a risk, I think it’s prudent to apply (the) precautionary principle,” Kall said.  He called it a “travesty” that “we just don’t have that freedom of choice.”  Steve Robertson, the executive director of the Kentucky Dental Association, said a federal judge who in 2024 ruled that the Environmental Protection Agency needed to take action on concerns about recommended fluoride levels “overreached a little bit.”   Steve Robertson, the executive director of the Kentucky Dental Association, center, testifies against making fluoridated water optional in the state. (Kentucky Lantern photo by Sarah Ladd) “The preponderance of evidence shows that fluoride has been safe,” Robertson said. “I think we’ve reached the point on fluoride that the science part of this has turned into a spin contest.”  Brittany Elam, the policy specialist with Kentucky Voices for Health, also spoke against the bill. The committee received one letter of support for the bill from Cynthiana Mayor Isaac Dailey.  “I strongly support public health efforts, and I also believe that locally owned and operated water systems are best positioned to evaluate the operational, financial, and community impacts of fluoridation,” wrote Dailey. “Water systems across the commonwealth differ greatly in capacity and resources, and local officials are accountable to the communities they serve when making infrastructure and treatment decisions.”  In a letter opposing the bill, a slew of organizations — including the Kentucky Coalition for Healthy Children, Delta Dental of Kentucky, Kentucky Oral Health Coalition, Louisville Water Company and more — warned that losing access to fluoride in a state with already poor oral health would cause long-term health problems and damage the workforce.    “Maintaining comprehensive community water-fluoridation programs promotes a healthy, more engaged workforce,” the letter says. “A higher prevalence of dental problems impacts Kentuckians’ ability to work and learn, with employees missing more work to address their own dental treatment needs, or to support their children’s needs, as kids are nearly three times more likely to miss school when they have poor oral health. Jeopardizing water fluoridation programs will lead to increased healthcare costs and disparities in oral health outcomes, particularly among low-income and underserved populations.”  Health advocacy letter House Local Government letter 1-28-26 GET THE MORNING HEADLINES. SUBSCRIBE The post Kentucky lawmakers again try to make water fluoridation optional appeared first on The Lexington Times. ...read more read less