Utah may become the first state in the U.S. to ban fluoride in public water statewide, a move that would override local decisions on whether to add the cavity-fighting mineral to drinking water.

The bill now awaits the signature of Gov. Spencer Cox, who has not said whether he will approve the measure, The Associated Press reported.

If signed, Utah would be the first state to ban fluoride in public water systems, a move that has raised praise from some lawmakers but concerns from public health experts and dental professionals.

Supporters of the bill, including state Rep. Stephanie Gricius and state Sen. Kirk Cullimore, both Republicans, argue that adding fluoride is too expensive.

“I don’t dispute that there can be positive benefits from fluoride, which is why the bill also includes a deregulation of the prescription,” Gricius said in a text message to The Associated Press, referencing a fluoride pill. “This isn’t anti-fluoride legislation, it is pro-informed consent and individual choice.”

But dental and other public health experts warn that banning fluoride could increase cavities, especially in low-income communities.

Utah’s bill comes as newly appointed federal health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has expressed skepticism about water fluoridation, which is widely considered one of the greatest public health achievements of the last century.

“Fluoridation is the most cost-effective way to prevent tooth decay on a large scale,” said Lorna Koci, who chairs the Utah Oral Health Coalition.

“I think the anti-fluoride people, they’re latching onto Kennedy’s opportunity with his beliefs and using that now as a way to kind of get in the door to stop water fluoridation,” she added.

Utah ranked 44th in the nation as of 2022 for the percentage of residents receiving fluoridated water, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Out of 484 Utah water systems that reported data to the CDC, only 66 added fluoride. That included Salt Lake City, the state capital and Utah’s largest metropolitan area.

In 2023, voters in Brigham City rejected a proposal to remove fluoride from their water supply by more than a 2-to-1 margin.

Val Radmall, executive director of the Utah Dental Association, said he and other dental officials met with Gricius to try to get her to reevaluate the bill.

He worked in a non-fluoridated community for three decades, and said the lack of fluoride showed.

“I’d have a patient come in without cavities or anything else like that, and I’d say, ‘You didn’t grow up here. Where did you grow up?’ … because everybody here has lots of cavities,” Radmall concluded.

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