HB 28 — AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 24 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE PRACTICE OF DENTAL HYGIENE.

Summary

According to the American Dental Association, approximately 1/3 of Americans face challenges accessing dental care, where access challenges include difficulty getting to a dental office and overcoming financial barriers. In order to increase access to basic dental services, this bill will allow for dental hygienists to travel to certain facilities and provide dental hygiene services. Under existing law, a dental hygienist may only act under the general supervision of a dentist in the dental office, state institutions, or schools. Prior to offering these services, the facility owner/operator and the patient/legal guardian must approve of the dental services to be provided, and adequate safeguards must be provided, including the referral to a licensed dentist for consultation. This bill also updates the definition of the practice of dental hygiene services.

Bill Text

• Bill Text View text Current pdf

AI-generated reading aid from the bill's amendatory text — verify against the official bill.

The bill expands the scope of practice for dental hygienists by allowing them to provide services in certain facilities without direct supervision from a dentist.

• § 1101

  shall not include any other operation on the teeth or tissues of the mouth refer to the performance of dental hygiene services, by a dental hygienist licensed under this chapter, either generally or through telemedicine, rendering educational, preventative, and therapeutic dental services to the full extent of their education, including removal of plaque biofilm and calculus from dentition, application of preventative therapeutic agents to the teeth and periodontal tissues designed and approved for the prevention of dental caries and/or periodontal disease, dental hygiene assessments and dental hygiene clinical evaluations, risk assessments, planning, implementation of services, evaluation and documentation. → shall not include any other operation on the teeth or tissues of the mouth.

  This change clarifies what constitutes the practice of dental hygiene by eliminating redundant text about the performance of dental hygiene services.

• § 1121

  aA dental hygienist licensed under this chapter shall practice dental hygiene only under the general supervision of a licensed dentist, in the office of the licensed dentist or in any public school or other public institution of this State. → A dental hygienist licensed under this chapter shall practice dental hygiene only under the general supervision of a licensed dentist, in the office of the licensed dentist or in any public school or other public institution of this State.

  This change corrects a typographical error with the capitalization of 'A' in the beginning of the sentence.

• § 1121

  aA dental hygienist licensed under this chapter shall practice dental hygiene only under the general supervision of a licensed dentist, in the office of the licensed dentist or in any public school or other public institution of this State. → Except as provided under paragraph (2) of this subsection, a dental hygienist licensed under this chapter shall practice dental hygiene only under the general supervision of a licensed dentist, in the office of the licensed dentist or in any public school or other public institution of this State.

  This change establishes a conditional allowance for dental hygienists to practice under specific situations, expanding their scope of practice.

• § 1121

  (2) A dental hygienist licensed under this chapter may engage in the practice of dental hygiene under the following circumstances: (i) The practice is performed at a hospital, school, nursing facility and similar facilities as defined in Title 16, charitable institutions, or prisons; and (ii) The services are requested or approved by the operator or owner of the facility where the services are to be performed and by each individual patient or legal guardian being treated; and (iii) Adequate safeguards are present to protect the patient’s health and safety; and (iv) The dental hygienist shall refer each patient to a licensed dentist on an annual basis. Documentation of the referral must be maintained in the patient’s health record of that facility; and (v) A licensed dental hygienist must possess professional liability insurance.

  This introduces new provisions allowing dental hygienists to provide services in specific settings with required safeguards.

Action History

1. January 05, 2017

   Introduced and Assigned to House Administration Committee in House

Sponsors

• Gerald W. Hocker · Primary
• Daniel B. Short · Primary
• Kimberly Williams · Cosponsor
• David L. Wilson · Cosponsor
• John L. Mitchell · Cosponsor
• John A. Kowalko · Cosponsor
• Helene M. Keeley · Cosponsor
• Paul S. Baumbach · Cosponsor
• Brian J. Bushweller · Cosponsor
• Ruth Briggs King · Primary

Subjects