PRINTER'S NO. 1335
No. 1154 Session of 1983
INTRODUCED BY McMONAGLE, DORR, CALTAGIRONE, CAWLEY, MURPHY,
TRUMAN, LINTON, BLAUM, MRKONIC, DONATUCCI, RIEGER, SEVENTY,
GANNON, BOYES, O'BRIEN, SERAFINI, HERMAN, SWIFT AND GRUPPO,
JUNE 7, 1983
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON PROFESSIONAL LICENSURE, JUNE 7, 1983
AN ACT
1 Amending the act of May 1, 1933 (P.L.216, No.76), entitled "An
2 act relating to dentistry; defining and providing for the
3 licensing and registration of dentists and dental hygienists,
4 and for the revocation and suspension of such licenses and
5 registrations, subject to appeal, and for their
6 reinstatement; defining the powers and duties of the State
7 Dental Council and Examining Board and the Department of
8 Public Instruction; providing penalties; and repealing
9 existing laws," further defining the practice of dentistry.
10 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
11 hereby enacts as follows:
12 Section 1. Section 2 of the act of May 1, 1933 (P.L.216,
13 No.76), known as The Dental Law, amended May 13, 1959 (P.L.316,
14 No.59) and July 12, 1972 (P.L.866, No.96), is amended to read:
15 Section 2. Definitions.--A person engages in the "Practice
16 of Dentistry," within the meaning of this act, who diagnoses,
17 treats, operates on, or prescribes for any disease, pain or
18 injury, or regulates any deformity or physical condition, of the
19 human teeth, jaws, or associated structures, or conducts a
20 physical evaluation, or administers anesthetic agents, or uses
1 ionizing radiation in the course of dental practice, or who
2 fits, constructs, and inserts any artificial appliance, plate,
3 or denture for the human teeth or jaws, or who holds himself or
4 herself out as being able or legally authorized to do so. The
5 term "Practice of Dentistry" does not include:
6 (a) The practice of any of the healing arts by duly licensed
7 practitioners.
8 (b) The extracting of teeth or relieving pain by a licensed
9 physician or surgeon in emergencies, or the making of
10 applications for such purposes.
11 [(c) The taking of X-ray pictures of the human teeth, jaws
12 or adjacent structures.]
13 (d) The calling into this Commonwealth of a duly licensed
14 practitioner of dentistry of any other state or country, for
15 consultation with respect to any case under treatment, or for
16 demonstrating before any duly authorized dental society, in this
17 Commonwealth, or for the purpose of teaching in any dental
18 school approved by the board in the Commonwealth.
19 (e) The practice of dentistry by bona fide students of
20 dentistry in clinical departments and laboratories of approved
21 dental colleges.
22 (f) The practice of dentistry in a dental clinic operated
23 not for profit and under the direct supervision of a licensed
24 and registered dentist during a period of internship, not to
25 exceed two (2) years, by persons having acquired the preliminary
26 and professional education required for licensure to practice
27 dentistry in this Commonwealth, after notification to the board.
28 A "Dental Hygienist" is one who is legally licensed as such
29 by the said dental council and examining board to perform those
30 educational, preventive, and therapeutic services and procedures
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1 that licensed dental hygienists are educated to perform.
2 Licensed dentists may assign to their employed dental hygienists
3 intra-oral procedures which the hygienists have been educated to
4 perform and which require their professional competence and
5 skill but which do not require the professional competence and
6 skill of the employer-dentist. Such assignments shall be under
7 the supervision of a licensed dentist. Such performance of
8 intra-oral procedures by licensed dental hygienists shall be in
9 the office of a dentist or public or private institution such as
10 schools, hospitals, orphanages, and sanitoria or State health
11 cars. The foregoing shall not be construed as authorizing the
12 assignment of diagnosing, treatment planning and writing
13 prescriptions for drugs or writing authorizations for
14 restorative, prosthetic, or orthodontic appliances. The board
15 shall issue rules setting forth the necessary education and
16 defining the procedures that may be performed by dental
17 hygienists licensed under this act including those procedures
18 that may be performed under direct and general supervision.
19 The word "board," as used in this act, means the State Dental
20 Council and Examining Board.
21 Section 2. This act shall take effect in 30 days.
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