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New Dental Assisting Categories to begin in 2010

Governor Schwartzenneger signed legislation that moves implementation of the new "specialty" dental assisting categories to January 1, 2010. 

Legislation enacted in 2004 established three new licensure categories:  registered restorative assistant, registered surgery assistant and registered orthodontic assistant.  This legislation was scheduled to take place January 1, 2007.  Clean-up legislation extended the effective date to January 1, 2008.

"The additional delay until 2010 became necessary because the dental assisting educational programs throughout the state will need at least a year to put their curricula in place, publish revised course catalogs, etc.; and they can't begin that process until the Dental Board regulations establishing curriculum standards are in place," according to Gayle Mathe, CDA's Policy Development manager.

Denti-Cal deadline for use of tamper-resistant pads extended to April 2008

According to a new federal Medicaid requirement, providers in California's Denti-Cal program were to begin using tamper-resistant pads for all written prescriptions beginning October 1.  However, the October compliance date proved impossible to meet and has been delayed six months.  The new effective date for this requirement is April 1, 2008.

For more information on the above articles, please refer to the CDA Update, Volume 19, Issue 11, November 2007.