Mary Beth Rogers - Women's History Month
When Mary Beth (Davis) Rogers was young she had no idea she would one day grow up to pioneer the development of the group that focuses on the treatment of a chronic sleep disorder that afflicted her father for most of his life. Here's HERstory!
In 1991, Rogers became the founding executive director of the Sleep Disorders Dental Society now known as the American Academy of Dental Sleep Medicine (AADSM). AADSM is the non-profit national professional society dedicated exclusively to the practice of dental sleep medicine. It is the leading national organization representing dentists who treat sleep-disordered breathing, which includes obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and snoring, with oral appliance therapy (OAT).
Dental sleep medicine is an area of dental practice that focuses on the use of oral appliance therapy, as prescribed by a certified sleep dentist, to treat sleep-disordered breathing, including snoring and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).
In the beginning, the organization consisted of 25 members. With the help of a dedicated board of directors, Mary Beth Rogers was able to grow the organization from a small society to a membership with an impressive 500 active members by 2001. As of 2023, the membership has expanded to more than 3000 dentists!
Rogers was also instrumental in the development of educational programs for the AADSM. She organized and facilitated the group’s annual meetings for ten years, which now draw in excess of 2000 attendees each year. Mary Beth also led the board of directors in the development and administration of the first dental sleep medicine accreditation examination for dentists. This examination is now a crucial element in identifying expert dentists who treat obstructive sleep apnea.
In the early 1990s, Rogers started working with medical insurance companies around the country to educate them so that AADSM members could achieve reimbursement for the treatment of sleep apnea with oral appliances. She also worked closely with Medicare to finalize their medical policy regarding oral appliance therapy for the treatment of obstructive sleep apnea.
Mary Beth was the first recipient of the Distinguished Service Award which has been presented each year since 1999 by the AADSM for outstanding efforts in administration, public relations, and legislation.
In 2006, Mary Beth and her husband Robert R. Rogers, III, DMD founded Pittsburgh Dental Sleep Medicine (PDSM) to treat obstructive sleep apnea with custom FDA-approved oral appliances. She served as vice president and director of administrative services for their first office in Wexford, PA, and eventually, the network would expand to include offices in Monroeville, McMurray, and Harrisburg, PA.
They were the first dental sleep medicine provider to be nationally accredited to provide Oral Appliance Therapy treatment for sleep apnea. In addition, they were the first in the country to develop contracting with medical insurance companies such as Blue Cross/Blue Shield, UPMC Health Plan, Cigna, Atena, and many others.
For the past 30 years, Mary Beth consulted for corporations such as Respironics, in addition to many other private companies. She presented educational programs on medical insurance reimbursement, accreditation, and insurance contracting for the AADSM, Tufts University, and other educational programs around the country.
We honor Mary Beth Rogers during Women’s History Month for being an exceptional example of leadership, ingenuity, perseverance, and fortitude in the industry of dental sleep medicine.
Mary Beth is now retired and living with her husband in Franklin, TN.
