By: Sibley S.B. No. 1437
2001S0704/1
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to the training of dental hygienists.
1-3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-4 SECTION 1. The legislature finds that:
1-5 (1) a severe shortage of dental hygienists exists in
1-6 many areas of the state;
1-7 (2) the number of dental hygienists as a proportion of
1-8 the state's population has declined during the past decade;
1-9 (3) the shortage of dental hygienists is an obstacle
1-10 to providing oral hygiene services to citizens of the state,
1-11 including, particularly, underserved inner-city and rural
1-12 populations;
1-13 (4) dental hygienist training programs are operating
1-14 at capacity, with no significant increases in capacity anticipated
1-15 in the foreseeable future; and
1-16 (5) establishment of a new method of training dental
1-17 hygienists would increase the supply of dental hygienists and
1-18 expand the availability of oral hygiene services in the state.
1-19 SECTION 2. Section 256.053, Occupations Code, is amended to
1-20 conform to Section 19, Chapter 627, Acts of the 76th Legislature,
1-21 Regular Session, 1999, and is further amended to read as follows:
1-22 Sec. 256.053. ELIGIBILITY FOR LICENSE. (a) An [To qualify
1-23 for a license, an] applicant for a license to practice dental
1-24 hygiene in this state must be:
1-25 (1) at least 18 years of age;
2-1 (2) of good moral character;
2-2 (3) a graduate of an accredited high school or hold a
2-3 certificate of high school equivalency; and
2-4 (4) [(3)] a graduate of a recognized school of
2-5 dentistry or dental hygiene accredited by the Commission on Dental
2-6 Accreditation of the American Dental Association and approved by
2-7 the board or have provided evidence satisfactory to the board that
2-8 the applicant has completed a dental hygiene equivalency training
2-9 program approved by the board that meets the requirements of
2-10 Section 256.0531.
2-11 (b) A school of dentistry or dental hygiene described by
2-12 Subsection (a)(4) must include at least two full academic years of
2-13 instruction or its equivalent at the postsecondary level.
2-14 SECTION 3. Subchapter B, Chapter 256, Occupations Code, is
2-15 amended by adding Section 256.0531 to read as follows:
2-16 Sec. 256.0531. DENTAL HYGIENE EQUIVALENCY TRAINING PROGRAMS.
2-17 (a) A program approved by the board under this section must
2-18 provide dental hygiene training that is substantially equivalent to
2-19 training provided under traditional programs. A dental hygiene
2-20 equivalency training program must meet the requirements of
2-21 Subsections (b)-(e).
2-22 (b) The dental hygiene equivalency training program must
2-23 require a dental hygiene student to complete four semesters of
2-24 didactic education from a school of dentistry, dental hygiene
2-25 school, or other educational institution approved by the board.
2-26 (c) The didactic education required under Subsection (b)
3-1 shall be provided by instruction in the classroom or by distance
3-2 learning, remote course work, or similar modes of instruction
3-3 offered by an institution accredited by the Commission on Dental
3-4 Accreditation of the American Dental Association. The board may
3-5 require the didactic education to include instruction in anatomy,
3-6 pharmacology, x-ray, ethics, jurisprudence, hygiene, and any other
3-7 subject regularly taught in reputable schools of dentistry and
3-8 dental hygiene.
3-9 (d) The dental hygiene equivalency training program must
3-10 require a dental hygiene student to complete not less than 1,000
3-11 hours of clinical training under the direct supervision of a
3-12 dentist during a 12-month period. A dental hygiene student must
3-13 satisfactorily complete 75 full-mouth prophylaxes and demonstrate
3-14 the ability to accurately record the location and extent of dental
3-15 restorations and to chart mobility, furcations, gingival recession,
3-16 keratinized gingiva, and pocket depth on six aspects of each tooth.
3-17 Clinical training may occur simultaneously with didactic education.
3-18 (e) Before beginning clinical training, a dental hygiene
3-19 student must complete not less than two years of full-time
3-20 employment in a position involving clinical duties with dental
3-21 patients.
3-22 (f) To be qualified to train a dental hygiene student under
3-23 this section, a dentist must:
3-24 (1) be licensed in Texas and have practiced in Texas
3-25 for at least five years;
3-26 (2) have completed a certification or calibration
4-1 course approved by the board for purposes of this section; and
4-2 (3) be recertified at intervals of not more than three
4-3 years.
4-4 (g) A dental hygiene student who completes the requirements
4-5 of a program under this section must satisfactorily pass the
4-6 examination required for applicants for a dental hygienist license
4-7 under this chapter.
4-8 (h) A dental hygienist may train dental hygiene students
4-9 under this section if:
4-10 (1) the dental hygienist is employed by a dentist who
4-11 provides training under this section and the hygienist works under
4-12 the direct supervision of the dentist in the same office as the
4-13 dentist;
4-14 (2) the dental hygienist has practiced dental hygiene
4-15 full-time for the five years immediately preceding the time the
4-16 training is provided; and
4-17 (3) the dental hygienist has completed a certification
4-18 or calibration course approved by the board and has been
4-19 recertified at intervals of not more than five years.
4-20 (i) A dentist who supervises a dental hygienist trained
4-21 under this section has the same liability for acts performed by the
4-22 hygienist as if the dental hygienist were trained in a different
4-23 manner.
4-24 SECTION 4. (a) This Act takes effect September 1, 2001.
4-25 (b) The State Board of Dental Examiners shall implement the
4-26 dental hygiene training equivalency program under Section 256.0531,
5-1 Occupations Code, as added by this Act, not later than January 1,
5-2 2002.
5-3 SECTION 5. (a) In accordance with Subsection (c), Section
5-4 311.031, Government Code, which gives effect to a substantive
5-5 amendment enacted by the same legislature that codifies the amended
5-6 statute, the text of Section 256.053, Occupations Code, as set out
5-7 in this Act, gives effect to changes made by Section 19, Chapter
5-8 627, Acts of the 76th Legislature, Regular Session, 1999.
5-9 (b) To the extent of any conflict, this Act prevails over
5-10 another Act of the 77th Legislature, Regular Session, 2001,
5-11 relating to nonsubstantive additions and corrections in enacted
5-12 codes.