Proctor residents will have a chance to vote on fluoridation at their annual floor meeting Monday, March 6, provided the selectmen put the item on the agenda.

Monday, Jan. 23, is the meeting at which selectmen will make the decision on the town meeting agenda.

Those of us fighting fluoridation in Rutland would obviously like to see Proctor end this misguided practice of mass medication, but it’s not our fight.

Rutland, Proctor and Poultney are the only towns in Rutland County with fluoridated water supplies. A vote to end fluoridation in Proctor would be a good step toward making Rutland County fluoride free.

The recent news that Harry Chen is not seeking reappointment as health commissioner offers a glimmer of hope that fluoridation might get a new look, though it’s doubtful given the federal influence over state health policy.

With water issues an increasingly top-of-mind concern in discussions of health and the environment, perhaps the state will step up to the plate on fluoridation.

But there’s no reason Proctor needs to wait for Vermont government to acknowledge the obvious: Fluoridation is an obsolete and misguided public health measure. What say, Proctor?

Extensive critiques of Dr. Chen’s and Vermont dentists’ misleading and inaccurate statements on fluoridation may be found at rutlandfluorideaction.org, my website.

JACK CROWTHER
Rutland