Port Angeles voters to weigh in on fluoride in water

PORT ANGELES, Wash. (AP) - Voters in Port Angeles likely will decide in November whether the city should stop adding fluoride to the city's water system after doing so for nearly a decade.

The Port Angeles Daily News reportsthe Port Angeles City Council decided Tuesday night in a 4-3 vote to place a non-binding measure on the Nov. 3 ballot. It will ask voters whether to continue adding fluoride, a mineral in water and soil, to the city's water system.

Council members are posing the measure ahead of a decision they have to make in May, when the city's 10-year fluoridation contract with the Washington State Dental Foundation expires.

Most Americans get fluoridated water. Supporters say it reduces tooth decay and benefits those who do not have regular access to dental care.

Opponents raised public health concerns and the city shouldn't be making that decision for people.