Amalgam was center stage at last month’s 3rd conference of the parties to the Minamata Convention on Mercury – from beginning to end.
On opening day, the environment minister of Indonesia dramatically announced that its president would sign an order in 2020 ending amalgam use totally. Not to be outmatched, the European Union explained a process it will undertake next year that could result in a recommendation to phase out amalgam. Then the entire African region asked for a worldwide deadline for amalgam use.
Our team was honored to assist government delegations – even as the negotiations stretched into the night…and didn’t end until 5:00 am in the morning. A consensus was finally reached on the last day when the parties decided…
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After we launched the Chicago Declaration to End Dental Industry Mercury Use at the University of Illinois School of Public Health 18 months ago, some of the signatories obtained meetings with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) at high levels, persuading the agency to re-open the amalgam issue. On November 13-14, an FDA scientific advisory committee met to discuss metal implants and specifically dental amalgam. 
Nepal is the first country in Asia to announce its plan to phase out amalgam use.
Our success at the Minamata Convention treaty talks resulted in a requirement that countries must reduce their amalgam use – plus a mechanism for amending the treaty. Now we step up to the next stage. On the table is a proposed amendment to phase OUT amalgam use!
Three more European countries – Ireland, Finland, and Slovakia – have announced plans to phase out amalgam use!