On Oct. 23, the Dental Quality Assurance Commission (DQAC) adopted new dental infection control rules. As a part of the new rules, dental practitioners will be required to complete one hour of current infection prevention standards education annually by a qualified individual or organization.

DQAC’s Infection Control Committee still needs to address a few items, such as the date by which the training will be due and the means by which the training can be administered, and will be meeting in the near future to make a determination and provide clarification.

WSDA recommends that members wait until the Committee provides clarification before taking infection control training to satisfy the new requirement to avoid the possibility of the training not qualifying.

Future Member Benefit – Infection Control Training

After receiving clarification from the Committee, WSDA will develop an infection control training that meets the new requirements and will offer it as a member benefit to all WSDA members and their staff. Please continue to watch for updates from WSDA in the coming weeks regarding dental infection control requirements.

DQAC Update

On Friday, Dec. 11, the Dental Quality Assurance Commission (DQAC) determined that it is within a dentist’s scope of practice to administer COVID-19 vaccines during the current state of emergency. The Commission will formalize this determination by creating an interpretive statement on the matter. Additionally, the Commission will undergo emergency rulemaking to allow dentists to delegate the administration of COVID-19 vaccines to dental hygienists.

The next step will be to receive authorization from the Governor. WSDA’s lobbying team is actively engaging with the Governor’s office and will provide an update as soon as possible.

Frequently Asked Questions effective January 23, 2021
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WAC 246-817-660 goes in effect on December 1, 2021, but you should not wait! Do your research and put protocols in place to test and maintain waterlines, document your procedures and results, and make sure you are in compliance with the new State regulations.

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Please read our Health Care Provider Letter for more information.