00 CS FOR HOUSE BILL NO. 81(L&C) 01 "An Act extending the termination date of the Board of Dental Examiners; relating to 02 the Board of Dental Examiners and regulation of the practice of dentistry; and relating 03 to dental hygienists and dental assistants." 04 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 05  * Section 1. AS 08.03.010(c)(7) is amended to read: 06 (7) Board of Dental Examiners (AS 08.36.010) -- June 30, 2005 07 [2001]; 08  * Sec. 2. AS 08.32.110(a) is amended to read: 09 (a) The role of the dental hygienist is to assist members of the dental 10 profession in providing oral health care to the public. A person licensed to practice 11 the profession of dental hygiene in the state may 12 (1) remove calcareous deposits, accretions, and stains from the 13 exposed surfaces of the teeth beginning at the epithelial attachment by scaling and 14 polishing techniques; 01 (2) apply topical preventive [OR PROPHYLACTIC] agents; 02 (3) apply pit and fissure sealants; 03 (4) perform root planning and periodontal soft tissue curettage; 04 (5) perform other dental operations and services delegated by a 05 licensed dentist if the dental operations and services are not prohibited by (c) of this 06 section; and 07 (6) if certified by the board and under the direct or indirect supervision 08 of a licensed dentist, administer local anesthetic agents. 09  * Sec. 3. AS 08.32.110(d) is amended to read: 10 (d) This section does not prohibit a dental assistant from applying topical 11 preventive [OR PROPHYLACTIC] agents or pit and fissure sealants when those 12 duties have been delegated to the assistant by a dentist licensed under AS 08.36 or by 13 a dentist exempt from licensure under AS 08.36.350(a)(2). 14  * Sec. 4. AS 08.36.010 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: 15 (b) When making appointments of dentists and dental hygienists under (a) of 16 this section, the governor shall consider licensed dentists who have been nominated by 17 the Alaska Dental Society and licensed dental hygienists who have been nominated by 18 the Alaska State Dental Hygienists' Association. 19  * Sec. 5. AS 08.36.030 is amended to read: 20 Sec. 08.36.030. Election of officers. The board shall elect a president and a 21 secretary from among its members, each to serve for a term not to exceed two years. 22 The president must be a dentist licensed under this chapter. 23  * Sec. 6. AS 08.36.075(d) is amended to read: 24 (d) The board shall require that inspection of dental radiological 25 equipment occur once within every five calendar years and require that records 26 concerning the inspection be provided to the board by the owner or lessee of the 27 equipment and kept on file where the equipment is located. The board shall, upon 28 application by the owner or lessee of the dental radiological equipment, submission of 29 evidence documenting compliance with the inspection standards of the board, and 30 payment of a fee set by the board, issue to the owner or lessee an inspection seal 31 indicating the date by which the dental radiological equipment must pass inspection 01 again. The date on the inspection seal shall be December 31 of the fourth calendar 02 year that occurs after the calendar year in which the inspection occurred. A dentist 03 may not use, or allow a person under the dentist's supervision to use, dental 04 radiological equipment in this state after the date on the most recent inspection seal. 05 The board may authorize an inspector who is not a member of the board to  06 determine whether the owner or lessee of dental radiological equipment is in  07 compliance with the inspection standards of the board, collect the appropriate fee  08 and remit the fee to the board, and issue an inspection seal indicating the date by  09 which the dental radiological equipment must pass inspection again. An  10 inspector who performs an inspection under this subsection shall report the  11 results of each inspection to the board and to the department, indicating whether  12 the dental radiological equipment was in compliance with the inspection  13 standards of the board and whether an inspection seal was issued. 14  * Sec. 7. AS 08.36.160(e) is amended to read: 15 (e) A passing score on a clinical examination given by the Western Regional 16 Examining Board or a passing score on a clinical examination taken after  17 January 1, 2001, and given by the Central Regional Dental Testing Service, Inc.,  18 which is an entity incorporated in the state of Kansas, within the five years 19 preceding licensure application under this chapter constitutes a passing score on a 20 clinical examination required under this chapter [, PROVIDED THE 21 EXAMINATION WAS TAKEN ON OR AFTER JANUARY 1, 1987]. 22  * Sec. 8. AS 08.36.234(a) is amended to read: 23 (a) The board shall provide for the licensing without examination, except as 24 provided in (2) of this subsection, of a dentist who 25 (1) provides certification to the board that the dentist 26 (A) is a graduate of a dental school accredited by the 27 Commission on Accreditation of the American Dental Association, or its 28 successor agency, and holds a certificate from the American Dental 29 Association Joint Commission on National Dental Examinations that the 30 dentist has passed the written examination given by the commission; 31 (B) has passed clinical and written examinations required for 01 licensure in another state, territory, or region of the United States and is [HAS 02 BEEN] licensed to practice dentistry in a [THAT] state, territory, or region of 03 the United States; the state, territory, or region in which the dentist is licensed 04 must have licensing requirements at least generally equivalent to those of this 05 state at the time of application; if the board does not consider the licensing 06 requirements of the other jurisdiction to be generally equivalent to those of this 07 state at the time of application because certain areas of subject matter were not 08 included in the other jurisdiction's examinations, the board may find 09 compliance with the requirements of this subparagraph if the dentist holds a 10 specialty certification in the omitted subject areas; 11 (C) is in good standing with the licensing entity in the 12 jurisdiction where the dentist is currently licensed and in all jurisdictions in 13 which the dentist was previously licensed while practicing in those 14 jurisdictions; if the dentist is employed by the federal government, the dentist 15 must be in good standing with the employing federal agency; 16 (D) has been engaged in continuous active clinical practice 17 averaging at least 20 hours a week for each of the five years immediately 18 preceding the application 19 (i) in a jurisdiction in which the dentist was licensed 20 and in good standing; or 21 (ii) working for the federal government while in good 22 standing with the employing federal agency and after having been 23 licensed by a jurisdiction; 24 (E) is not the subject of an adverse decision based upon a 25 complaint, investigation, review procedure, or other disciplinary proceeding 26 within the five years immediately preceding application, or of an unresolved 27 complaint, investigation, review procedure, or other disciplinary proceeding, 28 undertaken by a state, territorial, local, or federal dental licensing jurisdiction 29 or a dental society; 30 (F) is not the subject of an unresolved or an adverse decision 31 based upon a complaint, investigation, review procedure, or other disciplinary 01 proceeding undertaken by a state, territorial, local, or federal dental licensing 02 jurisdiction, dental society, or law enforcement agency that relates to criminal 03 or fraudulent activity, dental malpractice, or negligent dental care and that 04 adversely reflects on the applicant's ability or competence to practice dentistry 05 or on the safety or well-being of patients; 06 (G) has not previously had a license to practice dentistry 07 suspended for grounds similar to those specified under AS 08.36.315, revoked, 08 or voluntarily surrendered; 09 (H) has completed at least 42 hours of continuing education 10 related to clinical dentistry in the three years preceding application for a 11 license in this state; the continuing education must have been approved by the 12 American Dental Association, the Academy of General Dentistry, or the 13 appropriate specialty board; 14 (I) has not within the previous three years failed the clinical 15 exam given by the Western Regional Examining Board; 16 (J) is not the subject of an adverse report from the National 17 Practitioner Data Bank or the American Association of Dental Examiners 18 Clearinghouse for Disciplinary Information that relates to criminal or 19 fraudulent activity, negligent dental care, or malpractice; 20 (2) has passed, to the satisfaction of the board, a written examination 21 that consists of the portion of the written examination given under AS 08.36.160(b) 22 that pertains to the state's laws on the practice of dentistry; the board may not require a 23 higher passing score for applicants under this section than the board requires for 24 applicants under AS 08.36.110; 25 (3) is personally interviewed by the board for purposes of verifying 26 credentials; 27 (4) pays all required fees; 28 (5) provides the board with an affidavit that the dentist is not an 29 impaired practitioner; 30 (6) provides to the board an authorization for release of records in a 31 form prescribed by the board. 01  * Sec. 9. AS 08.36 is amended by adding a new section to read: 02 Sec. 08.36.317. Civil fine authority. Notwithstanding AS 08.01.075(a), in a 03 disciplinary action, the board may impose a civil fine not to exceed $25,000 for each 04 violation of this chapter or of a regulation adopted under this chapter. 05  * Sec. 10. AS 08.36.360 is amended to read: 06 Sec. 08.36.360. Practice of dentistry defined. A person engages in the 07 practice of dentistry who 08 (1) performs or holds out to the public as being able to perform dental 09 operations; 10 (2) diagnoses, treats, operates on, corrects, attempts to correct, or 11 prescribes for [,] a disease, lesion, pain, injury, deficiency, deformity, or physical 12 condition, malocclusion or malposition of the human teeth, alveolar process, gingiva, 13 maxilla, mandible, or adjacent tissues; 14 (3) performs or attempts to perform an operation incident to the 15 replacement of teeth; 16 (4) furnishes, supplies, constructs, reproduces, or repairs dentures, 17 bridges, appliances or other structures to be used and worn as substitutes for natural 18 teeth, except on prescription of a duly licensed and registered dentist and by the use of 19 impressions or casts made by a duly licensed and registered dentist; 20 (5) uses the words "dentist" or "dental surgeon" or the letters "D.D.S." 21 or "D.M.D." or other letter or title that represents the dentist as engaging in the 22 practice of dentistry; 23 (6) extracts or attempts to extract human teeth; 24 (7) exercises control over professional dental matters or the operation 25 of dental equipment in a facility where the acts and things described in this section are 26 performed or done;  27 (8) evaluates, diagnoses, treats, or performs preventive procedures  28 relating to diseases, disorders, or conditions of the oral cavity, maxillofacial area,  29 or adjacent and associated structures; a dentist whose practice includes the  30 services described in this paragraph may only perform the services if they are  31 within the scope of the dentist's education, training, and experience and in accord  01 with the generally recognized ethical precepts of the dental profession; nothing in  02 this paragraph requires a person licensed under AS 08.64 to be licensed under  03 this chapter.