Water utility announces it’s ditching fluoride—then reveals it did so years ago

Residents in Birmingham, Alabama, received surprising news this month when their local water utility announced it would cease adding fluoride to the municipal water supply. However, it soon emerged that this change had actually taken place years earlier. On March 20, Central Alabama Water (CAW) issued a statement claiming that fluoridation had been discontinued due to "aging equipment" and the rising costs of maintenance and component replacements. The announcement also mentioned health concerns surrounding fluoride, suggesting that customers might prefer to manage their fluoride intake through toothpaste and mouthwash instead. CAW argued that stopping the addition of fluoride would empower individuals and their healthcare providers to make more informed choices regarding fluoride utilization. Just days later, a spokesperson for CAW clarified that three of its water treatment facilities had phased out fluoride years ago—in January 2023, August 2023, and March 2024. The spokesperson noted, "It's essential to understand that virtually no one in Birmingham has had fluoride in their water for the past two years." This transition occurred prior to a 2025 law that restructured the water board, and notably, there was no public notification about the cessation of fluoridation. This oversight left residents unable to discuss the changes with their dentists. Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin expressed his outrage over the situation in a series of posts on Facebook. He pointed out that many of the current leaders at CAW were also part of the previous board and should have been aware of the earlier discontinuation of fluoride. Among these leaders is CEO Jeffrey F. Thompson, who previously served as the assistant general manager of operations for the Birmingham Water Works Board. In a follow-up post, Woodfin raised concerns that CAW may have violated state law by failing to provide a 90-day written notice regarding the fluoride change, which should have included the reasons for the decision and information about affected communities.