H. B. 2363
(By Mr. Speaker, Mr. Kiss)
[Introduced February 20, 2001
; referred to the
Committee on Government Organization then Finance.]
A BILL to amend and reenact sections four, seven and seventeen-b,
article four, chapter thirty of the code of West Virginia, one
thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, all relating to
the board of dental examiners; grounds for refusal to issue,
suspension or revocation of license; compensation for board
members increased; and annual dental license renewal fee
increased.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That sections four, seven and seventeen-b of article four,
chapter thirty of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine
hundred thirty-one, as amended, be amended and reenacted to
read as follows:
ARTICLE 4. DENTISTS, DENTAL HYGIENISTS AND DENTAL CORPORATIONS.
§30-4-4. Board of dental examiners.
The "West Virginia Board of Dental Examiners" heretofore
established shall be continued and shall be composed of six
members. The members of the board in office on the date this
section takes effect shall, unless sooner removed, continue to
serve until their respective terms expire and until their
successors have been appointed and have qualified. Members of the
board shall serve for a term of five years. In addition to the
five practicing dentists appointed to the board, there shall be
appointed one dental hygienist with a degree in dental hygiene from
an accredited college, who shall be appointed for a term beginning
on the first day of July, one thousand seventy-seven two thousand
one. The member of the board who is a licensed dental hygienist is
empowered to participate in and vote on all transactions and
business of the board.
All members of the board shall be appointed by the governor,
by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. Each member of
the board, at the time of his appointment and during his term as
such member, shall have been a citizen of this state and shall have
been either a licensed dentist or a licensed dental hygienist for
a period of not less than five years immediately preceding his appointment.
No person may be is eligible for appointment to the board who
is connected with or interested in any dental college or dental
department of any institution of learning or in a dental supply
business.
Except for the dental hygienist, any member shall be eligible
for reappointment for one additional consecutive term.
Each appointment of a licensed dentist, whether for a full
term or to fill a vacancy, shall be made by the governor from among
three nominees therefor selected by the West Virginia dental
association society and each appointment of a licensed dental
hygienist, whether for a full term or to fill a vacancy, shall be
made by the governor from among three nominees therefor selected by
the West Virginia dental hygienist' association. In the case of an
appointment for a full term such nominations shall be submitted to
the governor not later than eight months prior to the date on which
the appointment shall become effective. In the case of an
appointment to fill a vacancy, such nominations shall be submitted
to the governor within thirty days after a request for such
nominations shall have been made by the governor to the president
of the West Virginia dental association
Notwithstanding the provisions of section eleven, article one
of this chapter, each member of the board shall receive one two
hundred dollars for each day actually spent in attending meetings
of the board, or of its committees, and shall also be reimbursed
for all reasonable and necessary expenses actually incurred in the
discharge of his duties under the provisions of this article.
§30-4-7. Refusal to issue, suspension or revocation of license;
grounds.
The state board of dental examiners may refuse to issue a
license to practice dentistry or dental hygiene in this state, or
after issuance may suspend or revoke the same, for any of the
following causes:
(1) (a) The presentation to the board of any diploma, license
or certificate illegally or fraudulently obtained, or one obtained
from an institution which is not reputable, or one obtained from an
unrecognized or irregular institution or state board.
(b) Suspension or revocation of a license issued by another state or territory on grounds which would be the basis of
discipline in this state.
(c) Incompetent, negligent or willful misconduct in the
practice of dentistry or dental hygiene which shall include the
rendering of unnecessary dental services and any departure from or
failure to conform to minimal standards of acceptable and
prevailing dental or dental hygiene practice in their area of
expertise as shall be determined by the board. The board need not
establish actual injury to the patient in order to adjudge a
dentist, dental hygienist or limited registrant guilty of this
care for dental assistants in which proceeding actual injury to the
patient need not be established.
(d) Engaged in conduct that indicates a lack of knowledge of,
an inability to apply or the negligent application of, principles
or skills of dentistry or dental hygiene.
(2) (e) Be guilty of gross ignorance or gross inefficiency in
his profession.
(3) (f) Conviction of a felony; and a certified copy of the
record of the court of conviction shall be sufficient proof of such
conviction.
(4) (g) Announcing or otherwise holding himself out to the public as a specialist or as being specially qualified in any
particular branch of dentistry or as giving special attention to
any branch of dentistry or as limiting his practice to any branch
of dentistry without first complying with the requirements
established by the board of dental examiners for such specialty and
having been issued a certificate of qualification in such specialty
by the board.
(5) (h) Be guilty of unprofessional conduct. The following
acts or any of them shall be conclusively presumed to be
unprofessional conduct:
(a) (1) Be guilty of any fraud or deception.
(b) (2) The commission of a criminal operation or conviction
of a crime involving moral turpitude.
(c) (3) Chronic or persistent inebriety or addiction to
narcotics or drugs.
(d) (4) Be guilty of the violation of any professional
confidence or be guilty of disclosing any professional secret.
(e) (5) Be grossly immoral.
(f) (6) Be guilty of employing what are known as "cappers" or
"steerers" to obtain business.
(g) (7) The obtaining of any fee by fraud or misrepresentation.
(h) (8) Employ directly or indirectly, or direct or permit any
suspended or unlicensed person so employed, to perform operations
of any kind or to treat lesions of the human teeth or jaws or
correct malimposed formations thereof.
(i) (9) Practice, or offer or undertake to practice, dentistry
under any firm name or trade name or under any name other than his
own true name: Provided, That any licensee may practice under a
firm name or partnership name containing nothing but the surname of
every member of such firm or partnership.
(j) (10) Professional connection or association with, or
lending his name to another, for the illegal practice of dentistry,
or professional connection or association with any person, firm, or
corporation holding himself, themselves, or itself out in any
manner contrary to this article.
(k) (11) Make use of any advertising relating to the use of
any drug or medicine of unknown formula.
(l) (12) Advertise to practice dentistry or perform any
operation thereunder without causing pain.
(m) (13) Advertise professional superiority or the performance
of professional services in a superior manner.
(n) Advertise prices charged for professional service.
(o) Advertise by means of large display, flickering, or
glaring light signs, or contain as a part thereof the
representation of a tooth, teeth, or bridgework, or any portion of
the human head.
(p) Employ or make use of advertising solicitors or free
publicity press agents.
(q) (14) Advertise to guarantee any dental service.
(r) Advertise in any manner calculated to, or tending to,
deceive or mislead the public: Provided, That such licensee may
announce, by way of a professional card containing not more than
his name, title, degree, office location, office hours, business
telephone number, and residence address and telephone number, if
desired, and if he limits his practice to a specialty he may
announce it, but such card shall not be greater in any case than
five inches by six inches in size and such information may be
inserted in public print when not more than two newspaper columns
in width and two inches in depth; and he may announce his change of
place of business, absence from, or return to, business in the same
manner, and issue appointment cards to his patients, when the
information thereon is limited to matter pertaining to the time and place of appointment and that permitted on the professional card,
and he may display his name, title, and degree upon the windows or
doors of his office and by a doorplate or nameplate or office
directory when the information is limited to not more than that
contained on the professional card, but the name, title and degree
of the licensee shall shall not be displayed on said doors,
windows, doorplates, and nameplates or office directory in
lettering greater in height than seven inches.
(s) (15) To solicit subscriptions from individuals within or
without the state for, or advertise or offer to individuals within
or without the state, a course or instruction or course materials
in any phase, part or branch of dentistry or dental hygiene in any
journal, newspaper, magazine or dental publication, or by means of
radio, television, or United States mail, or in or by any other
means of contacting individuals: Provided, That the foregoing
provisions of this subparagraph (s) shall not be construed so as to
prohibit: (i) An individual dentist or dental hygienist from
presenting articles pertaining to procedures or technique to state
or national journals or accepted dental publications; or (ii)
educational institutions approved by the board from offering
courses or instruction or course materials to individual dentists and dental hygienists from within or without the state.
The term advertising, as used in this section, shall be
construed to include the use of radio or any loud-speaking device
or any other similar method or agency any and all types of public
media.
(i) Any action or conduct which would have warranted the
denial of the license.
This entire section is passed in the interest of the public
health, safety and welfare, and its provisions shall be liberally
construed to carry out its object and purpose.
§30-4-17b. Annual information and renewal fee; notice;
reinstatement; penalty fees; waiver of payment of
fee on retirement or disability; change of
address.
On or before the first day of February of each year, every
dentist licensed to practice dentistry in this state, and every
dental hygienist licensed to practice dental hygiene in this state,
shall transmit to the secretary of the board upon a form prescribed
by the board, his signature, post-office address, office address,
the serial number of his license certificate, whether he has been
engaged during the preceding year in the active and continuous
practice of dentistry or dental hygiene, as the case may be, whether within or without this state, and such other information as
may be required by the board, together with an information and
renewal fee herein provided for.
The annual information and renewal fee for a dentist shall be
seventy-five one hundred twenty-five dollars and for a dental
hygienist shall be fifty dollars: Provided, That nothing stated
herein prevents the board from setting these fees by rule as set
forth in section six, article one of this chapter.
Upon receipt of the required information and the payment of
the proper renewal fee, the licensee shall be issued a renewal
certificate authorizing him to continue the practice of dentistry
or the practice of dental hygiene in this state for a period of one
year from the first day of February.
A license to practice dentistry or dental hygiene granted
under the authority of this article shall be canceled on the first
day of May if the holder thereof fails to secure a current renewal
certificate by that day. Any licensee whose license is thus
canceled by reason of the failure, neglect or refusal to secure the
proper renewal certificate may be reinstated by the board at any
time within six months from the date of the cancellation of said
license upon the payment of the proper renewal fee and an additional fee of twenty-five dollars. If the licensee shall not
apply for renewal of his license as herein required within the said
six months, that person shall, at the discretion of said board, be
required to file an application for and take the examination
provided in this article should he desire to practice dentistry or
dental hygiene in this state.
Upon failure of any licensee to submit the required
information and pay the annual renewal fee as herein required by
the statutory date, the board shall attempt to notify such licensee
in writing by mailing to his last registered address a notice of
the requirements of this section apprising him of the fact that his
license to practice will be canceled on the statutory date:
Provided, That failure to mail or receive such notice shall not
affect the cancellation of his license.
The board may waive the annual payment of the renewal fee
herein required, and issue a renewal certificate to any West
Virginia licensee for at least twenty-five years and who is
presently retired from active practice, or to any West Virginia
licensee who has retired for reasons of physical disability, so
long as such retirement continues: Provided, That the licensee
provides the board with the information required by this section.
Every licensed dentist within thirty days of changing his
place of practice or establishing additional offices shall furnish
the secretary of the board with his new professional address.
Every licensed dental hygienist within thirty days of changing
his place of employment shall furnish the secretary of the board
with his new professional address and the name of his employer.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to provide additional
grounds for refusal to issue, suspension or revocation of a license
to practice dentistry; to increase compensation of members of the
board of dental examiners; and, to increase the annual license
renewal fee for dentists to $125.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.