BILL REQ. #:  H-3902.1 

Read first time 01/13/10.   Referred to Committee on Health Care & Wellness.

     AN ACT Relating to dental hygienists working with physicians and nurse practitioners; and amending RCW 18.29.056.

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

Sec. 1   RCW 18.29.056 and 2009 c 321 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1)(a) Subject to RCW 18.29.230 and (e) of this subsection, dental hygienists licensed under this chapter with two years' practical clinical experience with a licensed dentist within the preceding five years may be employed, retained, or contracted by health care facilities and senior centers to perform authorized dental hygiene operations and services without dental supervision.
     (b) Subject to RCW 18.29.230 and (e) of this subsection, dental hygienists licensed under this chapter with two years' practical clinical experience with a licensed dentist within the preceding five years may perform authorized dental hygiene operations and services without dental supervision under a lease agreement with a health care facility or senior center.
     (c) Dental hygienists performing operations and services under (a) or (b) of this subsection are limited to removal of deposits and stains from the surfaces of the teeth, application of topical preventive or prophylactic agents, polishing and smoothing restorations, and performance of root planing and soft-tissue curettage, but shall not perform injections of anesthetic agents, administration of nitrous oxide, or diagnosis for dental treatment.
     (d) The performance of dental hygiene operations and services in health care facilities shall be limited to patients, students, and residents of the facilities.
     (e) A dental hygienist employed, retained, or contracted to perform services under this section or otherwise performing services under a lease agreement under this section in a senior center must, before providing services:
     (i) Enter into a written practice arrangement plan, approved by the department, with a dentist licensed in this state, under which the dentist will provide off-site supervision of the dental services provided. This agreement does not create an obligation for the dentist to accept referrals of patients receiving services under the program;
     (ii) Collect data on the patients treated by dental hygienists under the program, including age, treatments rendered, insurance coverage, if any, and patient referral to dentists. This data must be submitted to the department of health at the end of each annual quarter, during the period of time between October 1, 2007, and October 1, 2013; and
     (iii) Obtain information from the patient's primary health care provider about any health conditions of the patient that would be relevant to the provision of preventive dental care. The information may be obtained by the dental hygienist's direct contact with the provider or through a written document from the provider that the patient presents to the dental hygienist.
     (f) For dental planning and dental treatment, dental hygienists shall refer patients to licensed dentists.
     (2) For the purposes of this section:
     (a) "Health care facilities" are limited to hospitals; medical clinics owned or operated by physicians or nurse practitioners; nursing homes; home health agencies; group homes serving the elderly, individuals with disabilities, and juveniles; state-operated institutions under the jurisdiction of the department of social and health services or the department of corrections; and federal, state, and local public health facilities, state or federally funded community and migrant health centers, and tribal clinics.
     (b) "Senior center" means a multipurpose community facility operated and maintained by a nonprofit organization or local government for the organization and provision of a combination of some of the following: Health, social, nutritional, educational services, and recreational activities for persons sixty years of age or older.