An oral device for improving airway patency includes a base adapted to be held between a patient's upper and lower teeth and a tongue-engaging member. The tongue-engaging member engages the tongue and displaces the tongue anteriorly when the base is held between the patient's teeth. A vacuum is applied through the base and the tongue-engaging member in order to draw the soft palate against a posterior region of the tongue in order to stabilize the soft palate and open or clear the patient's airway.