STAND. COM. REP. NO. 3420

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: H.B. No. 2207

H.D. 2

S.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Twenty-Ninth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2018

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Commerce, Consumer Protection, and Health, to which was referred H.B. No. 2207, H.D. 2, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO DENTAL ASSISTANTS,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to require the Board of Dental Examiners to adopt rules to establish a regulatory structure for the regulation of dental assistants in Hawaii.

Your Committee received testimony in support of this measure from the Board of Dental Examiners, Hawaii Dental Hygienists' Association, and a petition with ninety-seven names. Your Committee received comments on this measure from the Hawaii Dental Association.

Your Committee finds that dental assistants are auxiliary personnel who perform supportive dental procedures under the direct supervision, direction, evaluation, and responsibility of a licensed dentist. Your Committee further finds that Hawaii is one of only a handful of states that does not require certification of dental assistants. Training for dental assistant duties is generally done on the job by the supervising dentist or another assistant, and may vary from office to office or dentist to dentist.

According to testimony received by your Committee, several tasks routinely performed by dental assistants can pose a reasonable risk of injury to patients. As such, establishing uniform training and certification standards for dental assistants will ensure the health, safety, and well-being of Hawaii dental patients. This measure therefore requires the Board of Dental Examiners to adopt rules to establish a tiered regulatory structure for the regulation of dental assistants in Hawaii. However, your Committee has heard concerns that the tiered system proposed by this measure does not establish minimum education, training, or certification requirements for tier 1 basic dental assistants.

Your Committee notes that S.B. No. 2926, S.D. 1 (Regular Session of 2018), which was previously passed by the Senate, also proposes to regulate dental assistants in Hawaii. Your Committee concludes that the language in S.B. No. 2926, S.D. 1, is preferable because it establishes minimum requirements for all dental assistants hired on or after July 1, 2018, establishes other uniform training standards for dental assistants, and requires dental assistant certification by the Dental Assisting National Board, Inc. Your Committee notes that the Dental Assisting National Board, Inc., is a national certification board for dental assistants that currently certifies more than thirty-seven thousand dental assistants nationwide, and its certification program is accredited by the National Commission for Certifying Agencies.

Accordingly, your Committee has amended this measure by:

(1) Deleting its contents and inserting the contents of S.B. No. 2926, S.D. 1, a measure which:

(A) Establishes minimum requirements for all dental assistants hired on or after July 1, 2018;

(B) Requires dental assistants employed on or after July 1, 2018, to successfully complete the Dental Assisting National Board, Inc.'s National Entry Level Dental Assistant certification within three years of first being hired;

(C) Requires dental assistants with four or more years' experience to apply or register for the Dental Assisting National Board, Inc.'s Certified Dental Assistant certification; and

(D) Exempts dental assistants with more than ten years' experience from having to obtain a Certified Dental Assistant certification, but requires these dental assistants to hold a cardiopulmonary resuscitation certification and pass the Dental Assisting National Board, Inc.'s Infection Control examination within two years; and

(2) Inserting an effective date of July 1, 2018.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Commerce, Consumer Protection, and Health that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 2207, H.D. 2, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 2207, H.D. 2, S.D. 1, and be placed on the calendar for Third Reading.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Commerce, Consumer Protection, and Health,

________________________________

ROSALYN H. BAKER, Chair