Legislation has been filed to license dental therapists in Florida. The Florida Dental Association (FDA) is opposed to dental therapy legislation. Florida does not need another licensed dental professional.

Currently, Florida has a robust dental workforce with enough dentists for its 22 million citizens, with a dentist to patient ratio of 1 to 2,000. We need to implement strategies to get dentists in areas where the need is greatest and make it possible for them to stay there. Dental hygienists have been able to provide preventive and some therapeutic services in the health access settings since 2011 when the FDA supported expanding their scope of practice for the application of sealants and fluoride varnishes. Restorative expanded function dental assistants (EFDA) may now be trained to expand their scope due to rules adopted recently by the Florida Board of Dentistry. The FDA has been and will continue to be innovative in maximizing its current dental workforce.

Sen. Jeff Brandes (R-St. Petersburg) and Rep. Juan Fernandez-Barquin (R-Miami) have filed Senate Bills (SB) 684 and 686 and House Bill (HB) 471, which would create a pathway for dental therapists to be licensed in Florida. For a copy of the legislation, click on the bill numbers: SB 684, SB 686 and HB 471.

This legislation would authorize dental therapists to perform irreversible procedures, such as extractions and partial root canals, under the general supervision of a dentist in public health access settings. This means the dentist would not have to be on the premises or evaluate the treatment rendered. Additionally, the legislation indicates that dental therapists would be practicing in nursing homes and Head Start programs, meaning the most vulnerable citizens of Florida would be subject to treatment from an individual lesser trained than a dentist.

It is important that legislators understand that this is not the solution to address access to dental care in Florida.

• Floridians, particularly those who are underserved and facing complicated medical conditions, deserve to see a dentist with the comprehensive knowledge and experience to identify complex dental and medical conditions and address complications that may arise during care.
• Florida needs immediate solutions to improve oral health and access to care in Florida.
• The dental therapy program is not a free market solution, and it will not lower costs for consumers.

While there are underserved and rural areas of our state where more dentists are needed, there is not a shortage of dentists or a need to create a new provider.

The FDA has filed HB 465 by Rep. Mike Grant (R-Port Charlotte) and SB 716 by Sen. Ed Hooper (R-Palm Harbor), which will have an immediate impact in helping Floridians who are in need of dental care. HB 465 and SB 716 would reinstate the dental student loan repayment program and codify in statute the Donated Dental Services (DDS) program. Click to see the legislation for HB 465 and SB 716. This legislation would encourage dentists to work in rural and underserved areas as full-time Medicaid providers. In return, dentists would be eligible to receive $50,000 a year in financial assistance, up to five years maximum. Furthermore, the legislation would codify in law the DDS program, which will help more dentists and dental labs donate dental treatment to individuals who are elderly, disabled and/or medically compromised.

Call to Action

Your help is needed today! Contact your legislators and let them know that the FDA supports implementing immediate solutions and maintaining the high standard of dental care for all Floridians, regardless of where they live or where they may receive services. Urge them to SUPPORT HB 465 and SB 716. Additionally, urge your legislators to OPPOSE SB 684, SB 686 and HB 471. Creating dental therapists as a new licensed dental provider in Florida is not the answer to addressing dental care — it’s creating another layer of government that will take more than five years to implement. Click here to access the FDA’s Legislative Action Center. Please note: You must be logged in to view this page.

For additional information or questions, please contact FDA Chief Legislative Officer Joe Anne Hart at jahart@floridadental.org or 850.224.1089.

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Special Alert - Feb. 5, 2019

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