BILL REQ. #:  S-4952.2 

READ FIRST TIME 02/03/06.   

     AN ACT Relating to pilot projects for dental hygienists; and creating new sections.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1   The legislature recognizes that access to preventive oral health care services by citizens of Washington state is currently restricted by regulatory, financial, and geographic barriers. The legislature finds that many citizens unnecessarily suffer from dental disease. Access to preventive oral health care services can reverse dental disease in many cases, thereby significantly reducing costs of providing oral health care services. The legislature further finds that dental hygienists licensed in Washington state have been providing preventive oral health care services without the supervision of a dentist to the most medically fragile patients in institutional settings for over twenty years. The legislature also finds that access to preventive oral health care services can be improved, and that the cost of these services can be reduced when provided by dental hygienists practicing independent of dentist supervision. It is the intent of the legislature to address the problem of access to preventive oral health care services by providing five pilot projects that allow dental hygienists to practice within the current scope of practice without the supervision of a dentist.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 2   The access to preventive care pilot projects are established. The secretary of health is authorized to create five pilot projects in dentally underserved areas of the state whereby dental hygienists are authorized to practice within the current scope of practice in RCW 18.29.050, without the supervision of a dentist. These pilot projects are effective for three years after the effective date of this section. The secretary of health, in consultation with the dental hygiene examining committee, shall adopt rules to implement this section, including the designation of dentally underserved areas of the state.
     (1) The goals of the pilot projects are to:
     (a) Open access to preventive oral health care services delivered by dental hygienists;
     (b) Collect data of patients treated by dental hygienists, including age, treatments rendered, insurance coverage, if any, and patient referral to dentists;
     (c) Evaluate independently managed dental hygiene practices in increasing the patient flow to dentists, thereby improving dental care; and
     (d) Examine the ways in which the pilot projects affect access to preventive oral health care for underserved persons. This shall include a report that (i) determines current levels of child and adult access to dental care, application of preventive sealants or other decay preventive measures, and incidence of child dental decay; and (ii) provides indicators of changes in levels of child and adult access to dental care, application of preventive sealants or other decay preventive measures, and incidence of child dental decay as the result of these pilot programs.
     (2) The secretary of health, in consultation with the dental hygiene examining committee, will:
     (a) Create a registry in which dental hygienists can apply to be a participant in the pilot projects; and
     (b) Select the participants of the five pilot projects.
     (3) The secretary of health, in consultation with the Washington state dental hygienists' association, shall provide a report to the legislature by December 1, 2009, evaluating the outcome of the pilot projects.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 3   Dental hygienists participating in the pilot projects shall not perform injections of anesthetic agents, administer nitrous oxide, or give a diagnosis for dental treatment.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 4   Dental hygienists participating in the pilot projects shall refer patients seen in these pilot projects to dentists as needed.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 5   The secretary of health shall establish a task force to recommend ways to improve oral health services to dentally underserved children and adults in Washington state. The task force shall provide a report with recommendations to the legislature by December 1, 2009. Task force membership shall include representation from the department of health, board of health, Washington state dental hygienists association, Washington state dental association, and local health authorities from dentally underserved regions of the state.