2003 Minnesota Statutes

     150A.05 Licensed dental practice. 

    Subdivision 1.    Practice of dentistry.  A person shall 
 be deemed to be practicing dentistry within the meaning of 
 sections 150A.01 to 150A.12: 

    (1) who uses a dental degree, or designation, or card, 
 device, directory, sign, or other media whereby the person 
 represents an ability to diagnose, treat, prescribe, or operate 
 for any disease, pain, deformity, deficiency, injury, or 
 physical condition of the human tooth, teeth, alveolar process, 
 gums or jaw, or adjacent or associated structures; 

    (2) who is a manager, proprietor, operator or conductor of 
 a place where dental operations are performed; 

    (3) who performs dental operations of any kind 
 gratuitously, or for a fee, gift, compensation or reward, paid 
 or to be paid, to any person or agency; 

    (4) who uses a roentgen or X-ray machine for dental 
 treatment, roentgenograms or for dental diagnostic purposes; 

    (5) who extracts a human tooth or teeth, or corrects or 
 attempts to correct malpositions of the human teeth or jaws; 

    (6) who offers and undertakes, by any means or method, to 
 diagnose, treat or remove stains or accretions from human teeth 
 or jaws; 

    (7) who takes impressions of the human tooth, teeth, or 
 jaws or performs any phase of any operation incident to the 
 replacement of a part of a tooth, a tooth, teeth or associated 
 tissues by means of a filling, a crown, a bridge, a denture or 
 other appliance; 

    (8) who furnishes, supplies, constructs, reproduces, 
 repairs, or offers to furnish, supply, construct, reproduce or 
 repair prosthetic dentures or plates, bridges or other 
 substitutes for natural teeth, to the user or prospective user 
 thereof; or 

    (9) who performs any clinical operation included in the 
 curricula of recognized dental schools and colleges.  

    Subd. 1a.    Practice of dental hygienists.  A person 
 shall be deemed to be practicing as a dental hygienist within 
 the meaning of sections 150A.01 to 150A.12: 

    (1) who provides care that is educational, preventive, and 
 therapeutic through observation, assessment, evaluation, 
 counseling, and therapeutic services to establish and maintain 
 oral health; 

    (2) who evaluates patient health status through review of 
 medical and dental histories, assesses and plans dental hygiene 
 care needs, performs a prophylaxis including complete removal of 
 calciferous deposits, accretions and stains by scaling, 
 polishing, and performs root planing and debridement; 

    (3) who administers local anesthesia and nitrous oxide 
 inhalation analgesia; or 

    (4) who provides other related services as permitted by the 
 rules of the board. 

    Subd. 2.    Exemptions and exceptions of certain practices 
 and operations.  Sections 150A.01 to 150A.12 do not apply to: 

    (1) the practice of dentistry or dental hygiene in any 
 branch of the armed services of the United States, the United 
 States Public Health Service, or the United States Veterans 
 Administration; 

    (2) the practice of dentistry, dental hygiene, or dental 
 assisting by undergraduate dental students, dental hygiene 
 students, and dental assisting students of the University of 
 Minnesota, schools of dental hygiene, or schools of dental 
 assisting approved by the board, when acting under the direction 
 and supervision of a licensed dentist or a licensed dental 
 hygienist acting as an instructor; 

    (3) the practice of dentistry by licensed dentists of other 
 states or countries while appearing as clinicians under the 
 auspices of a duly approved dental school or college, or a 
 reputable dental society, or a reputable dental study club 
 composed of dentists; 

    (4) the actions of persons while they are taking 
 examinations for licensure or registration administered or 
 approved by the board pursuant to sections 150A.03, subdivision 
 1, and 150A.06, subdivisions 1, 2, and 2a; 

    (5) the practice of dentistry by dentists and dental 
 hygienists licensed by other states during their functioning as 
 examiners responsible for conducting licensure or registration 
 examinations administered by regional and national testing 
 agencies with whom the board is authorized to affiliate and 
 participate under section 150A.03, subdivision 1, and the 
 practice of dentistry by the regional and national testing 
 agencies during their administering examinations pursuant to 
 section 150A.03, subdivision 1; 

    (6) the use of X-rays or other diagnostic imaging 
 modalities for making radiographs or other similar records in a 
 hospital under the supervision of a physician or dentist or by a 
 person who is credentialed to use diagnostic imaging modalities 
 or X-ray machines for dental treatment, roentgenograms, or 
 dental diagnostic purposes by a credentialing agency other than 
 the Board of Dentistry; or 

    (7) the service, other than service performed directly upon 
 the person of a patient, of constructing, altering, repairing, 
 or duplicating any denture, partial denture, crown, bridge, 
 splint, orthodontic, prosthetic, or other dental appliance, when 
 performed according to a written work order from a licensed 
 dentist in accordance with section 150A.10, subdivision 3. 

    HIST: 1969 c 974 s 5; 1981 c 102 s 1; 1983 c 29 s 1; 1983 c 70 
 s 3; 1986 c 444; 1993 c 84 s 3; 1996 c 273 s 1