KentuckyHB 7762026 Regular SessionHouseWALLET

AN ACT relating to health care services and declaring an emergency.

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Bill Overview

Analyzed Economic Effects

17 provisions identified: 8 benefits, 2 costs, 7 mixed.

Bigger role for dental hygienists

A dental hygienist can work up to 15 straight business days without the dentist on site if key safeguards are met: at least 3,000 hours’ experience, a board‑approved emergency course renewed every 2 years, follows the dentist’s written emergency plan, treats only patients the dentist examined in the last 11 months with a written order, and gets the patient’s signed consent about the dentist’s absence. Hygienists may take X‑rays on a written order even if the dentist is away. They may do school screenings that meet KRS 156.160(1)(j) and must tell patients it is only a screening. In volunteer clinics, they may give education, screenings with referral, fluoride, sealants, and hygiene demos without a dentist on site. They may also serve in public health programs under approved protocols. The Board will list procedures hygienists cannot do when the dentist is not present, and must set clear rules for hygienist licensing and supervision. The law allows common employment setups, including government school programs. “Dental hygiene” now includes periodontal care that uses antimicrobial agents and other treatment‑plan tasks, and a “dental hygienist” is defined by licensure.

Hygienists can give anesthesia with training

A dentist may let a licensed hygienist give local anesthesia and nitrous oxide under direct supervision after extra training and a Board certificate. Training must include at least 32 hours of coursework, 2 hours of nitrous clinical with at least 2 patients, 12 hours of local anesthesia with at least 3 injections at each maxillary and mandibular site, and a written exam score over 74%. If an anesthesia registration goes unused for more than 1 year, the registrant must complete Board‑approved continuing education from an accredited dental school. Auxiliary staff may not give injectable drugs or anesthesia unless another law allows it.

More tasks for dental assistants

Registered dental assistants can do coronal polishing with a rubber cup or cordless polisher after a Board‑approved course and competency test. Dentists may let trained assistants take dental X‑rays; the dentist must keep the assistant’s training certificate. Each assistant’s registration must be clearly displayed in the office. Dental assistants still may not diagnose, plan treatment, prescribe, do surgery, make final impressions, or do any irreversible intraoral work.

Board fees capped and finances set

The Board must set exam, license, renewal, and reinstatement fees at or below the national average for state dental boards. All Board fees go into a non‑lapsing state trust fund the Board uses to do its work. The Board may keep a petty cash fund of up to $1,000 for quick expenses.

Protections for emergency and volunteer care

If you are licensed and give good‑faith emergency care at the scene, you are not liable for civil damages. Dentists who act in good faith on approved peer‑review committees are also protected from damages. The law lets volunteer health workers provide services under KRS 39A.350–39A.366.

Supervised care by dental students

Students in approved dental programs may treat patients under instructor oversight and a licensed dentist who teaches. They may work in public, clinic, or charitable settings. Students cannot accept any fee beyond expenses covered by a stipend.

Dental scholarships and loan repayment aid

The Board may use its fund to offer scholarships or help repay education loans. You must meet eligibility rules the Board sets in regulation. The law does not set dollar amounts.

More practice authority for dentists

Licensed dentists may prescribe any drug needed within their professional scope. Dentists can sign death certificates when it is necessary in their work. Dentists licensed in other states may give clinical demonstrations at dental societies, conventions, associations, or schools without Kentucky licensure during the demo only.

Existing dental ownerships are protected

Dental practice ownerships and contracts that were lawful on the law’s effective date remain valid. They may still be expanded or changed later.

Licensed dentists must run and control care

Only people licensed under dental law may use dental titles or own or run a dental practice, and employers must hire only licensed dental staff. Unlicensed people or companies, including those that set reimbursement rates, cannot control clinical decisions, records, or staff. A licensed dentist has final say. Working without a valid license is a crime: first offense is a Class B misdemeanor; later offenses are Class A misdemeanors.

Report sedation harms and publish discipline

If dental treatment uses IV or conscious sedation beyond anxiety control and the patient is admitted to a hospital, the provider must report it to the Board. Not reporting can lead to discipline. When discipline is final, the Board posts the order online, adds it to the provider’s record, and reports it to the National Practitioner Database.

Felony conviction ends dental license

If you are convicted of, plead guilty to, enter an Alford plea for, or complete a diversion for a Class A, B, or C felony after you were first licensed, you cannot keep any license or certificate under this chapter.

Tighter rules for dental specialists

The Board only recognizes specialties approved by the national commission. Specialist dentists may not practice outside their specialty. Exceptions include a general dentist referral for procedures within training, charity care under Board rules, Governor-declared disasters, and pediatric dentists following special‑needs patients past age 18.

Telehealth consent and anti-fraud rules

Dentists who use telehealth must get the patient’s informed consent before the visit and keep medical information private under state and federal rules. The Board must adopt rules to prevent fraud and fee‑splitting in telehealth and to allow telehealth for care and for continuing education.

Two-year dental license renewals and posting

All dental licenses last two years and expire December 31. Dentist licenses expire in odd years; other dental licenses expire in even years. Renew online unless you request a paper form before November 1. If your license lapses, you must pay the original fee plus late fees and meet board rules to reinstate. You must keep and show your license and post it where people can see it at work.

New rules for Kentucky dental board

The board has 10 voting members: 7 dentists (at least 3 general), 2 hygienists, and 1 citizen, plus nonvoting school and public health reps. Voting members must have 5 years of Kentucky practice, be in good standing, have no discipline in 8 years, and no financial ties to entities the board regulates. Members can serve only two consecutive terms; missing three regular meetings in one year counts as a resignation and the Governor fills the seat within 90 days, with a 4‑year wait to rejoin. The board meets at least four times a year; voting members get necessary expenses and $200 per day of official work. The law creates an Office of the Board led by an executive director (bachelor’s degree and 5+ years in public administration), lets the board hire an attorney, set exam standards, and issue advisory opinions, and requires liability insurance for board and staff. A majority vote is needed to send a case to hearing, offer a settlement, or dismiss a complaint, and written complaints must include the filer’s contact information.

Clear rules on dentists and labs

A dentist or dental specialist is defined by holding a Kentucky license. The law says teeth whitening, taking impressions for appliances, and making or repairing dentures count as practicing dentistry and must be done on a dentist’s written lab work order. Casts and models must come from impressions taken by a licensed dentist, and advertising these services to the public counts as practicing dentistry.

Sponsors & Cosponsors

Sponsor

Derek Lewis
Republican • House

Cosponsors

Chad Aull
Democrat • House

Roll Call Votes

All Roll Calls

Yes: 223 • No: 0

House vote • 4/1/2026

passed

Yes: 90 • No: 0

Senate vote • 4/1/2026

3rd reading, passed

Yes: 37 • No: 0

House vote • 3/11/2026