U.S. Representative Elijah E. Cummings (D-MD), an esteemed statesman and stalwart oral health champion, died on October 17, 2019 from complications of long-standing health issues. He was 68 years old. Cummings was an exceptional man of extraordinary passion, commitment and dedication to his beloved Baltimore, the state of Maryland, and the nation. His tireless work and unprecedented actions to ensure access to oral health care, particularly for disadvantaged children, has changed lives for countless Marylanders and people throughout the country...

As the former director of the Office of Oral Health at the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, I was most gratified to see The Sun’s high profile coverage of the pilot adult Medicaid dental program on the front page of the Sunday paper. It reminded me of another story on your front page many years ago about the then low access to dental services and high disease rates for poor Maryland children...