Around 1954 Roslyn residents discussed but never fluoridated.
About 1962, Riverhead
stopped several years of fluoridation because it corroded the pipes.
In 1975, the Nassau County-based
New York State Coalition Opposed to Fluoridation (NYSCOF) was formed to
successfully thwart a NY state-wide fluoridation mandate bill by creating a
bill to ban fluoridation. NYSCOF
incorporated in 1979 (a not-for-profit organization) Other state-wide attempts occurred
prior to 1975.
Further bipartisan state
bills to curb or ban fluoridation, or for a moratorium, were introduced in
subsequent years, co-sponsored by numerous state legislators, including a
significant number of legislators from Long Island.
In 1978/1979, the
Nassau-Suffolk Health Systems Agency, when Health Systems Agencies had a lot of
influence and were federally funded, tried to fluoridate Nassau
and Suffolk Counties.
NYSCOF spokespeople
presented their data at a meeting of the Governing Board consisting of high
level officials, including the Health Commissioners of both Nassau
and Suffolk Counties. Sympathetic state
legislators wrote to the Health Systems Agency on NYSCOF’s behalf.
A Fluoridation Symposium was agreed to. A format was developed, including
allowing presenters to question each other along with the audience.
NYSCOF lined up professionals to testify on their behalf. The public
forum was called the “Fluoridation Educational Symposium."
After weeks of preparations, NYSCOF was notified, in 1980, that the
professionals who were supposed to speak in favor of fluoridation could not
participate in the Symposium after all. Therefore, the Symposium did not take
place and all plans to implement fluoridation/fluoride programs were tabled.
In 1983, Levittown stopped 29 years of water
fluoridation by a 2 to 1 vote of water company customers (spearheaded by the
Levittown Safe Water Association and NYSCOF and backed by many community groups).
In 1991 both Nassau and Suffolk
Counties were targeted
for fluoridation, again. After hearing
from constituent groups and individuals, County Executive Tom Gulotta’s
opposition to fluoridation stopped the Nassau Health Commissioner from proceeding.
However, in Suffolk County,
residents, groups and legislators opposed the Suffolk County Health
Commissioner’s plan to fluoridate Suffolk
County. The Suffolk County Legislature voted down
fluoridation after much constituent dissent and media attention. This
legislature was very angry they hadn’t been consulted by the Health Commissioner
in the first place.
In 1995, Carle Place stopped fluoridating their
water supply on their own.
In 1996, residents (including citizens, local neighborhood and civic
organizations, Citizens Campaign for the Environment,aign for the Environment County Executive Tom Gulotta and others)
successfully demanded 23 years of fluoridation be stopped in the Nassau County
homes bordering NYC and receiving NYC’s fluoridated water from Jamaica Water
Supply (Now the Water Authority of Western Nassau County). Up until then, 28,000 Nassau County Homes in Bellerose,
Elmont, Floral Park, Stewart Manor, North New Hyde Park, North Valley Stream,
and parts of Franklin Square, were receiving
NYC’s fluoridated water without consent
NYSCOF representatives were
presented with a Pen Certificate by Senator Owen H. Johnson, when legislation
was passed to prevent health commissioners or other unelected officials from
having the authority to fluoridate the water without the expressed permission
of the local elected governing body.
We have no first hand
knowledge of this; but Newsday reported
that, in 1952, fluoride testing began in Nassau
County with Carle Place fluoridating and Mineola acting as the control city. Dr. Kumar of the NYS
Dep’t of Health didn’t have any information on this.
END