ATLANTA—More Georgians without access to dental care will be able to receive care from dental hygienists, thanks to new legislation signed recently by Gov. Nathan Deal. The law also will improve opportunities for dental hygiene students seeking to work in underserved communities.
The new law, which goes into effect Jan. 1, 2018, will allow dental hygienists to expand their preventive services statewide where their services are most needed, said Pam Cushenan, a dental hygiene instructor on Georgia State University’s Dunwoody Campus. Previously, dental hygienists only could practice these services while a dentist was on site. The new law allows dentists to authorize their dental hygienists to work “in a safety net setting” without their direct supervision.
“These safety net settings include long-term care communities, Title I schools and hospitals,” said Cushenan. “In addition, dentists may authorize their dental hygienist to provide preventive services in private practice settings.
Dental hygiene students and their future patients will benefit from the new law, she said. Under the supervision of dental hygiene faculty, students now can use portable dental equipment to increase the delivery of preventive service.
“This will further expand the skill and competence of student dental hygienists while increasing the access to preventive dental care for children, adults and elders,” Cushenan said. “For example, Georgia State’s Perimeter College dental hygiene students have provided education and screening in refugee centers, shelters, hospitals, Title I schools and assisted living residences for years. There will now be opportunity to do more for our most vulnerable residents.”
In 2017, Georgia was ranked 49th in access to oral health. Sixteen counties in Georgia have no dentists, and 115 out of 159 counties in Georgia are considered to be health professional shortage areas, she said.
“This collaborative legislative success is a victory for the citizens of Georgia, the dental hygiene profession and dentistry as a whole,” Cushenan said.