House File 516 - Introduced
HOUSE FILE 516
BY JENEARY and BRADLEY
A BILL FOR
1 An Act relating to the placement of dental sealants on teeth by
2 a dental assistant.
3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:
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 H.F. 516
1 Section 1. Section 153.38, Code 2021, is amended to read as
2 follows:
3 153.38 Dental assistants —— scope of practice.
4 1. A registered dental assistant may perform those services
5 of assistance to a licensed dentist as determined by the
6 board by rule. A registered dental assistant with additional
7 education and training, as provided by the board by rule,
8 may become certified to perform expanded functions or become
9 qualified to participate in dental radiography.
10 2. Level one expanded function procedures for dental
11 assistants shall include the placement of dental sealants on
12 teeth. A registered dental assistant who has successfully
13 completed level one expanded function procedures training
14 through the university of Iowa college of dentistry or a
15 program certified by the commission on dental accreditation or
16 through another program or entity approved by the board may
17 place dental sealants on teeth.
18 3. Services performed by a registered dental assistant
19 shall be performed under supervision of a licensed dentist,
20 but this section shall not be construed to authorize a dental
21 assistant to practice dentistry or dental hygiene.
22 4. The board shall not adopt rules that delegate to a dental
23 assistant the administration of local anesthesia or the removal
24 of plaque, stain, calculus, or hard natural material except by
25 toothbrush, floss, or rubber cup coronal polish.
26 5. Every licensed dentist who utilizes the services of
27 a registered dental assistant for the purpose of assistance
28 in the practice of dentistry shall be responsible for acts
29 delegated to the registered dental assistant.
30 6. A dentist shall delegate to a registered dental assistant
31 only those acts which are authorized to be delegated to
32 registered dental assistants by the board.
33 EXPLANATION
34 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with
35 the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly.
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 H.F. 516
1 This bill relates to the scope of practice of dental
2 assistants.
3 Under current law, a registered dental assistant may
4 perform those services of assistance to a licensed dentist
5 as determined by the dental board by rule. A registered
6 dental assistant with additional education and training, as
7 provided by the board by rule, may become certified to perform
8 expanded functions or become qualified to participate in dental
9 radiography.
10 Current law also provides that a registered dental assistant
11 who has successfully completed expanded function training
12 through the university of Iowa college of dentistry or a
13 program certified by the commission on dental accreditation may
14 place sealants on teeth.
15 The dental board noticed rule ARC 5381C, reviewed by the
16 administrative rules review committee on February 5, 2021,
17 proposed amending 650 IAC 23.6 to provide that level two
18 expanded function procedures for dental assistants include the
19 placement of sealants.
20 The bill provides instead that level one expanded function
21 procedures for dental assistants shall include the placement
22 of dental sealants on teeth and that a registered dental
23 assistant who has successfully completed level one expanded
24 function procedures training through a program certified by
25 the commission on dental accreditation or through another
26 program or entity approved by the dental board may place dental
27 sealants on teeth.
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Statutes affected:
Introduced: 153.38