Hurricane Resources

Storm Proof: 2023 Practice Readiness Guide

The Florida Dental Association (FDA) wants to make sure your practice is ready for a hurricane — check out FDA Services’ Storm Proof: 2023 Practice Readiness Guide.




FDA Foundation Disaster Relief Grant Program

The FDA Foundation has resources available for Florida dentists who have been impacted by a hurricane. Emergency disaster grants for immediate personal needs such as food, water, clothing, emergency shelter, medications, etc. are available through the FDA Foundation’s Disaster Fund.

To apply:

Grant amounts are determined based on completion of an application and available funds. You may access the FDA Foundation Emergency Disaster Grant Application here.

Grant Awards:

FDA Foundation grants up to $2,000 per dentist are available.

Questions or Assistance:

If you do not have access to the internet and need assistance completing your application over the phone, please call the FDA office at 800.877.9922. If you have questions or need additional information, please contact R. Jai Gillum at foundation@floridadental.org.

Additional Resources:

In addition to the Emergency Disaster Assistance Grants provided by the FDA Foundation, here are additional resources that you may find helpful.

  • Claims phone numbers: fdaservices.com/billings-and-claims
  • The American Dental Association (ADA) offers support to dentists who may be affected by the approaching storm. This includes:
  • Federal Emergency Management (FEMA) resources and information is available at fema.gov.
  • When activated, the Florida Small Business Emergency Bridge Loan Program can provide short-term, interest-free loans up to $50,000 to small-business owners located in designated disaster areas that experienced physical and/or economic damage as a result of a hurricane. Please visit floridadisasterloan.org for more information on eligibility requirements and application instructions.
  • U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) provides disaster loans and business counseling for people and business affected by a hurricane. Learn more about what you can use an SBA disaster loan, which Florida counties are eligible and how to apply at sba.gov/funding-programs/disaster-assistance.
  • For information on federal disaster unemployment assistance for workers and the self-employed affected by a hurricane, please visit floridajobs.org or call 800.385.3920.
  • File for D-SNAP (Disaster Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) to receive short-term food assistance benefits from the USDA Food and Nutrition Service. ANYONE in the affected areas is eligible, and you can use the money you save on food to replace clothes and other necessities. Visit disasterassistance.gov/get-assistance/forms-of-assistance/5769 or call 866.762.2237 for more information.
  • Helpful tip: Call your creditors and notify them that you are in the affected disaster area. Most will delay your bill due dates for a month or two. This includes your personal and business creditors (mortgage company, cable, electricity, water, phone, credit card companies, etc.).

Relocated Due to a Hurricane?

If you have relocated due to a hurricane and need to change your address on file with the Florida Board of Dentistry (BOD), your FDA family can help. Please provide us with your full name, Florida dental license number, cell phone number and your new address via one of the following methods:

Once we receive this information, we will work with BOD staff to have the address associated with your dental license updated as soon as possible. If you have relocated and are submitting claims to an insurance plan:
  1. Call the insurance plan and ask for a supervisor.
  2. Explain the situation to the plan — you’re temporarily out of your office and using a location with an address that doesn’t match your tax ID.
  3. Make sure to specifically mention the hurricane, the damage to your practice, and how you are trying to continue caring for and treating your patients. The plan should have a process for situations like this.
If you get push back or run into issues with a specific plan, please call FDA Director of Third Party Payer and Professional Affairs Casey Stoutamire at 850.350.7202 or send a message to the FDA’s Facebook page to her attention.

2018 Recovery Symposium

For videos from the 2018 Recovery Symposium in Panama City Beach, click here.

Dentists Affected by Natural Disasters Can Maintain DEA Registration

Dentists can still retain their Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) registration even if they lose their physical practice or there are other circumstances, according to the DEA Diversion Control Division.

The division has established a link for assistance for DEA registrants who suffered from a domestic or international disaster, such as a hurricane, earthquake, flood, tornado or typhoon, as well as for other health care providers who experienced nondisaster-related situations that warrant help from the DEA.

Dentists can request assistance with relocating a DEA-registered address to a new location; the approval of a new address to dispense controlled substances; the destruction of controlled substances which have been damaged due to the disaster; questions concerning the destruction of damaged controlled-substance inventory; a list of reverse distributors who can assist with the destruction of damaged controlled substances; assistance with obtaining controlled substances from a wholesaler; the transfer of an existing DEA registration number from an out-of-state location to the state where the disaster occurred; among other situations, by visiting deadiversion.usdoj.gov/disaster_relief.htm.

To expedite a request, email the following information to Natural.Disaster@usdoj.gov:

1. Email subject line: Domestic Request (or International
    Request)
2. Registrant name
3. Existing DEA registration number
4. Name, telephone number and email address
5. Specific and detailed information that describes what exact
    type of assistance is needed from the DEA must be included
    in the body of the email

Any dentist who prescribes controlled substances in Schedules II, III, IV or V must register with the DEA every three years. Registering with the DEA allows dentists to write patient prescriptions for various controlled substances, including narcotic analgesics, such as hydrocodone and oxycodone. It also includes hydrocodone combination products, which were recently reclassified as Schedule II substances subject to tighter restrictions to help reduce diversion, misuse and abuse of prescription painkillers.

For more information about DEA registration, visit the American Dental Association Center for Professional Success at Success.ADA.org and search for “DEA.”