Natalia I. Chalmers, DDS, MHSc, PhD
Dr. Chalmers is a board-certified pediatric dentist, oral health policy expert, and public health advocate who brings more than 20 years of clinical, research, industry, and regulatory experience to CMS in her role as Chief Dental Officer in the Office of the Administrator. Previously, Dr. Chalmers served as a Dental Officer at the US Food and Drug Administration.
Dr. Chalmers has devoted her career to transforming scientific and health care data and information into actionable insights to address equity, improve care, and better inform policy and funding. Dr. Chalmers completed her Doctor of Dental Surgery degree at the Faculty of Dental Medicine of the Medical University of Sofia, a residency in pediatric dentistry at the University of Maryland School of Dentistry, and a Ph.D. in oral microbiology from the Graduate Partnerships Program of the University of Maryland School of Dentistry and the National Institute for Dental and Craniofacial Research at the National Institutes of Health, Post-doctoral Fellowship at the Forsyth Institute, and Clinical Research Fellowship at the National Institute for Dental and Craniofacial Research, National Institutes of Health.
Dr. Chalmers holds a Master’s degree in Clinical Research from Duke Medical University and a Certificate in Drug Development and Regulatory Science from the University of California San Francisco School of Pharmacy. Her research has translated into action, improving oral care and advocating for the role health policy can play across the lifespan—particularly when it embraces dental well-being as a facet of care for the whole person.