LINCOLN, Neb. – On April 17, 2008, the unicameral Nebraska legislature took a tremendous step toward improving the oral health of Nabraska’s citizens by passing LB 245 – a new law that calls on cities and towns with at least 1,000 residents to adjust the level of fluoride in their public water systems to help prevent tooth decay.
The legislature overrode Gov. Dave Heineman’s veto on the last day of its legislative session. In 2003 and 2005, the Nebraska Dental Association introduced a bill requiring statewide fluoridation, however it was never debated before the entire unicameral.
Under LB 245, city councils of cities without optimally fluoridated water have the right to put the fluoride issue to a vote of their communities anytime before June 1, 2010. That means that more than 297,000 citizens in 64 Nebraska communities could consider fluoridation measures on a ballot in the next two years.
“I am proud of my family’s healthy lifestyle and yet my children have needed a lot of dental work. I grew up in a fluoridated city and never had this kind of dental decay. All kids need the benefits of fluoridation, no matter where they live.”
