ORS 680.020: Practice of dental hygiene without license prohibited; applicability of dental hygiene license requirement.

(1) It is unlawful for any person not otherwise authorized by law to practice dental hygiene or purport to be a dental hygienist without a valid license to practice dental hygiene issued by the Oregon Board of Dentistry. (2) Subsection (1) of this section does not apply to: (a) Dental hygienists licensed in another state making a clinical presentation sponsored by a bona fide dental or dental hygiene society or association or an accredited dental or dental hygiene education program approved by the board. (b) Bona fide students of dental hygiene who engage in clinical studies during the period of their enrollment and as a part of the course of study in an Oregon dental hygiene education program. The program must be accredited by the Commission on Dental Accreditation of the American Dental Association, or its successor agency, and approved by the board. The clinical study may be conducted on the premises of the program or in a clinical setting located off the premises. The facility, the instructional staff and the course of study at the off-premises location must meet minimum requirements prescribed by the rules of the board, and the clinical study at the off-premises location must be performed under the indirect supervision of a member of the faculty. (c) Bona fide students of dental hygiene who engage in community-based or clinical studies as an elective or required rotation in a clinical setting located in Oregon during the period of their enrollment and as a part of the course of study in a dental hygiene education program located outside of Oregon. The program must be accredited by the Commission on Dental Accreditation of the American Dental Association or its successor agency. The community-based or clinical studies must: (A) Meet minimum requirements prescribed by the rules of the board; and (B) Be performed under the indirect supervision of a member of the faculty of the Oregon Health and Science University School of Dentistry or another Oregon institution with an accredited dental hygiene education program approved by the board. (d) Students of dental hygiene or graduates of dental hygiene programs who engage in clinical studies as part of a course of study or continuing education course offered by an institution with a dental or dental hygiene program. The program must be accredited by the Commission on Dental Accreditation of the American Dental Association or its successor agency. (e) Candidates who are preparing for licensure examination to practice dental hygiene and whose application has been accepted by the board or its agent, if the clinical preparation is conducted in a clinic located on premises approved for that purpose by the board and if the procedures are limited to examination only. (f) Dental hygienists practicing in the discharge of official duties as employees of the United States Government and any of its agencies. (g) Instructors of dental hygiene, whether full- or part-time, while exclusively engaged in teaching activities and while employed in accredited dental hygiene educational programs. (h) Dental hygienists who are employed by public health agencies and who are not engaged in direct delivery of clinical dental hygiene services to patients. (i) Counselors and health assistants who have been trained in the application of fluoride varnishes to the teeth of children and who apply fluoride varnishes only to the teeth of children enrolled in or receiving services from the Women, Infants and Children Program, the Oregon Prenatal to Kindergarten Program or a federal Head Start grant program. (j) Persons acting in accordance with rules adopted by the State Board of Education under ORS 336.213 to provide dental screenings to students. (k) Dental hygienists licensed in another state or United States territory and practicing in this state under ORS 676.347. [Amended by 1963 c.266 §2; 1983 c.169 §19; 2003 c.310 §2; 2005 c.504 §2; 2007 c.379 §5; 2009 c.582 §1; 2012 c.80 §2; 2015 c.558 §5; 2017 c.342 §2; 2022 c.62 §6; 2023 c.547 §29]