A New Bill to Benefit Dental Patients
In our modern world, many new technologies have made their way into the medical and dental field. Telehealth is one of such technologies. What is it? Telehealth allows patients to access healthcare via the digital world, such as with a phone or computer. With telehealth has come “Direct-to-consumer” care, or DTC. This includes companies that deliver orthodontic treatment to the patient without their ever seeing a dentist.
Direct-To-Consumer
However, potential problems can arise for a patient if they do not have a professional examination before orthodontic treatment. According to the CDA, “Providing dental care to patients, especially moving teeth, without sufficient diagnostic information can potentially lead to serious patient harm, including loose or cracked teeth, gum recession and tooth loss. With emerging business models offering various dental services outside of a dental office’s four walls, including companies that provide direct-to-consumer orthodontic services, it is imperative that dental treatment continues to meet the standards of care.” It was further stated, “DTC orthodontic companies that are putting profits before patients by taking potentially unsafe shortcuts to the accepted standards of care.” In response to this, there is a new bill to benefit dental patients.
A New Bill to Take Effect
In line with this, the CDA supported the AB 1519 assembly bill which was recently signed into law. Set to take effect in January 2020, this bill will do the following:
Prior to the movement of teeth, a dentist must review a patient’s recent X-rays. This is the accepted standard of care for both dental offices and telehealth companies offering dental care.
A patient will be provided the basic information about their treating dentist, such as the dentist’s full name and state license number. This is no different from a traditional dental office.
A patient is able to submit a complaint about a licensee to the dental board. This is whether or not an arbitration clause or nondisclosure agreement has been signed.
Best in Patient Care
As is evident, efforts are being made to protect patients in the modern age as new technologies continuously come into use. At NCDS, we want all of our patients to enjoy quality care and be up-to-date with the latest information available to them.