Dr. Ira B. Lamster received his D.D.S. from the State University of New York at Stony Brook (1977), his M.M.Sc. from Harvard University (1980) and a Certificate of Special Training in Periodontology from the Harvard School of Dental Medicine (1980). Dr. Lamster served as Dean of the Columbia University College of Dental Medicine from 2001 to 2012, and Senior Vice President of Columbia University Medical Center from 2006 to 2012. He was on the faculty of the Mailman School of Public Health, Department of Health Policy and Management, from 2012 to 2017. Dr. Lamster is currently Dean Emeritus, Columbia University College of Dental Medicine, a Clinical Professor on the faculty of the Stony Brook University, School of Dental Medicine, and a member of the Santa Fe Group.

Dr. Lamster is the author of more than 200 manuscripts and book chapters. He served as Editor-in-Chief of the International Dental Journal from 2015 until 2021. Dr. Lamster’s research efforts have focused on diagnostic testing and risk assessment for periodontal disease, the interrelationship of periodontal disease and systemic disease, the oral health care needs of older adults, and the future of dental education and practice.

Dr. Brian’s clinical and administrative career has focused on the intersection of public health and policy in pursuit of health equity for underrepresented and marginalized populations. He serves as an associate professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Adams School of Dentistry (UNC ASOD), where he supports curricular innovation, leading health systems and policy-related course design, engages in translational health services research, and directs UNC ASOD’s community-based service-learning program, Dentistry in Service to Community (DISC). Dr. Brian also holds a joint faculty appointment at the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health in health policy and management.

Before joining UNC ASOD, Dr. Brian served as Director of the North Carolina Oral Health Collaborative (NCOHC) and Vice President of Impact, Strategy & Programs at the Foundation for Health Leadership & Innovation (FHLI), where he led coalition-building and community-based organizing to drive legislative, regulatory, and payment reform. In these capacities, Dr. Brian was instrumental in launching statewide programming to increase oral health care access and fundamentally change how care systems deliver person-centered oral health care. In recognition of these efforts, in 2021 he was awarded the John McFarland Leadership Award by the National Network for Oral Health Access (NNOHA).

Prior to moving to North Carolina, Dr. Brian served as Site Director in the Indian Health Service (IHS) for the Sault Tribe of Chippewa Indians in St. Ignace, Michigan, and Dental Director of a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) in New Haven, Connecticut, working in partnership with Yale University.

Dr. Brian serves on numerous national and state committees and holds multiple advisory and board appointments. In addition to serving on the Board of Directors for the National Network for Oral Health Access (NNOHA), where he serves on its advocacy committee, he is a member of the Council on Practice for the American Association of Public Health Dentistry (AAPHD), the Best Practices Committee for the Association of State and Territorial Dental Directors (ASTDD), and the Code Maintenance Committee for the American Dental Association (ADA). In these capacities, he is focused on supporting innovations in health care technology, promoting interdisciplinary care and clinical best practices, and ushering in health systems transformation through policy advocacy. Dr. Brian is also a member of the editorial board of Preventing Chronic Disease, a journal of the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC), peer reviewer for the Academy of General Dentistry, and Vice Chair of the Chatham County Board of Health in North Carolina.

Dr. Brian received his BS from Murray State University, his DMD from the University of Louisville, and his MHA from Central Michigan University. Dr. Brian was inducted as a fellow in both the International College of Dentists (ICD) and the American College of Dentists (ACD) in 2022 and 2023, respectively

Eric Berger serves as director of the Consortium for Medically Necessary Oral Health Coverage (www.OralHealthConsortium.org). Mr. Berger’s experience includes serving on the professional staff of the Commerce Committee of the U.S. House of Representatives and as Virginia’s Legislative and Policy Director for Health and Human Resources. Mr. Berger also served as CEO of the Partnership for Quality Home Healthcare, Senior Vice President of Public Policy and Communications for DaVita, and Vice President of Government Relations and Public Policy for US Oncology. Mr. Berger’s education includes the Master of Arts program in Public Administration at the University of Virginia and the Bachelor of Arts degree in political science and economics at the University of Richmond, which he attended under a University Scholars academic scholarship. Mr. Berger and his wife, Ann, reside in Santa Rosa Beach, Florida and are the proud parents of three adult children.