Protester Pulls His Own Tooth

A man protesting the lack of dental coverage under the Oregon Health Plan made a public display of pulling his own tooth with dental pliers bought at a garage sale.

Cliff Latta said he and others could find no dentists in the area willing to treat patients covered by the state insurance plan.

“The people at the top of the bureaucracy are well off and have full medical and dental care, but here in Coos Bay no dentists are on the Oregon Health Plan,” he said.

Latta, who lives in Coquille, held his demonstration on the front steps of the First Presbyterian Church following a community meeting.

After tugging for a few moments on the pliers, Latta chipped out a portion of his broken tooth.

“Let me say at this point that nobody should be forced to do this,” he said. “This isn’t fair.”