The spikes in new COVID-19 cases and the emergence of the Delta variant have prompted an increase in the number of COVID-related calls to the IDA. Despite the new wave of cases, there have been very few changes in CDC guidance for health care providers. The IDA COVID Task Force encourages you to not drop your guard. Dental treatment has proven to be safe for patients and dental team members when recommended COVID protocols are consistently followed. Below are some of the questions the IDA has been receiving lately, as well as answers, best practices for members and their offices, and links to helpful details.

Are masks still required in dental offices?
Yes. Even after the May 14 CDC announcement that individuals fully vaccinated against COVID no longer needed to wear masks indoors, this recommendation did not apply to health care settings, including dental offices.

In late July, the CDC reversed course somewhat and recommended the reinstatement of masks indoors for everyone regardless of vaccine status, though the recommendation centered more specifically on current hot spots around the country. View the map below to view outbreaks around the U.S.

Are all staff required to wear masks in dental offices?
As with patients, the CDC recommendation for masks in health care settings also applies to all dental office staff, including non-clinical employees. The exception is in the office break area, providing that all staff present are vaccinated against COVID-19. Needless to say, appropriate PPE is always required during clinical procedures.

Are we still required to screen patients for COVID?
Screening patients for COVID is still highly recommended by the ADA and CDC. Office staff should check for fever, symptoms of COVID and recent exposure to others who have tested positive for COVID.

Can I open my reception area?
The ADA continues to recommend keeping reception areas closed, but this is a decision a dentist should make based on the needs of the local community. View the latest ADA recommendations.

A patient refused to come to our office unless both I and the hygienist were vaccinated. Can I share this information?
You can share the vaccine status of your employees with patients only with permission from the employees. It may also be helpful to inquire of the patient why he or she is so concerned about contracting COVID in the dental office, and if appropriate, to offer an early morning or late afternoon appointment so as to minimize contact with other patients.

Can I ask about patients’ vaccination status?
You may ask about vaccination status as part of your medical history and information process, provided that you ask all patients uniformly.

When will we be able to receive vaccine booster shots?
On July 8, the FDA and CDC issued a joint statement that due to the vaccines’ effectiveness at preventing severe illness and hospitalization, boosters were neither necessary nor approved at this time. The IDA and ADA will continue to keep members informed should boosters become recommended.

Do I have to pay my employees who miss work because of a Covid positive test or exposure?
No. The requirement to pay for employees for missed work due to Covid expired December 31, 2020.

Can I require that my employees receive the COVID vaccine?
Most likely yes, for those staff who treat patients directly, but see the ADA vaccine FAQs for guidance on non-clinical staff. View the ADA vaccine FAQs.

Do vaccinated staff members still have to get tested if they’ve been exposed to COVID?
The CDC still recommends that the staff member exposed to COVID get tested. However, quarantine is not necessary unless the vaccinated staff member tests positive or begins experiencing symptoms. Vaccinated staff who test positive, regardless of symptoms, should quarantine for 10 days.

What do I do if a staff member tests positive for COVID? Are there different protocols if the employee is fully vaccinated but still contracts COVID?
New CDC data shows that both the vaccinated and unvaccinated are able to transmit the virus, so regardless of vaccination status, the staff member should quarantine for 10 days. In addition, the ADA recommends contacting patients who may have been exposed to COVID from the infected staff member.

 

The IDA Well Being Program addresses the needs of dentists impaired by substance abuse or chemical dependence. The program helps dentists with Substance Use Disorder (SUD) and is completely confidential. If you or a dentist you know needs help, contact our Well Being coordinator Candace Backer at wellbeing@indental.org, or call 800-562-5646. Click here to learn more about our Well Being program.

COVID has clearly affected dental office staffing. Many assistants and hygienists did not return to work following the spring 2020 temporary closure of most dental practices. Many employers in all industries are having trouble staffing their businesses, and dental offices are unfortunately in the same position.

In response to this problem, 2021-2022 IDA President Dr. Steven C. Hollar has appointed a Workforce Taskforce to work on our profession’s workforce shortage. Members will be tasked with addressing short term needs, “How do I fill the vacancies I have right now?” as well as long-term needs, “What can be done now to make sure we have the staff we need five, 10, 15 years from now?” There is no overnight fix for this problem, but the IDA recognizes the problem and is working on member and business solutions. They will be exploring strategies for encouraging experienced hygienists, assistants and front office personnel who left the profession, to return to the profession. They will also be studying ways to recruit new prospects into the profession, while also investigating any needed expansion of allied team educational programs around the state.

Members of the Workforce Taskforce include:

• Dr. Steve Ellinwood (Isaac Knapp District Dental Society), Chair
• Dr. Skip Cheesman (Indianapolis District Dental Society)
• Dr. Lisa Conard (Ben Hur Dental Society)
• Dr. Luciana Kano-Wilson (South Central Dental Society)
• Dr. Jeff Stolarz (Northwest Indiana Dental Society)
• Dr. John Williams (Indianapolis District Dental Society)
• Dr. Dave Wolf (Indianapolis District Dental Society)
• Andrea New, IDA Director of Volunteer Engagement

 

American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry President-Elect Dr. Jeannie Beauchamp has selected Dr. Tom Ison as the 2021-2022 Parliamentarian of the AAPD. The AAPD Parliamentarian not only serves in a functional capacity on the AAPD Board of Trustees, Executive Committee, and before the General Assembly, but is chosen personally by the incoming President for character, leadership skills, and ability to facilitate the Board’s goals and objectives.

Dr. Ison has held leadership roles at the local, state, regional, and national levels. He has been president of both the Southeastern Society of Pediatric Dentistry and the Kentucky Academy of Pediatric Dentistry. At the national level, he previously served as trustee for the AAPD.

Dr. Ison moved to southwestern Indiana in 2019 and has a full time pediatric practice in Newburgh.

Warsaw dentist Dr. Steven C. Hollar has begun his term as the 2021-2022 president of the IDA. Dr. Hollar formally assumed his duties as the association’s president on Sunday, May 16, at the IDA’s House of Delegates meeting at the Midwest Dental Assembly. He will serve as president until May 2022.

Dr. Hollar graduated from Indiana University School of Dentistry in 1993. He resides in Warsaw and is the owner of Hollar Dental Group, where he’s been serving his patients for 28 years. Dr. Hollar serves as chair of the IDA’s COVID-19 Task Force and has been an ADA Delegate in previous years. In addition to his work with the IDA and ADA, Dr. Hollar served as a member of the Indiana State Board of Dentistry for nine years, including two years as chair.

IDA is looking forward to a great year of leadership with Dr. Hollar!

The ADA announced May 12 that it named Dr. Raymond A. Cohlmia, dean of the University of Oklahoma College of Dentistry and a former ADA Board of Trustees member, as its executive director. Dr. Cohlmia will be replacing the retiring Dr. Kathleen O’Loughlin and will begin his new position on November 15.

Dr. Cohlmia’s experience includes joining the University of Oklahoma College of Dentistry faculty in 2009, serving in a variety of leadership positions. In 2011, he was named director of comprehensive care, and he served as assistant dean for patient care from 2013 until he was appointed dean in 2015. Prior to joining the University of Oklahoma, Dr. Cohlmia ran a private dental practice for 26 years.

“I am humbled and honored to be selected as the next executive director of the American Dental Association,” said Dr. Cohlmia.  “I have always believed that organized dentistry plays an integral role in the advancement of the profession, and to me, there is no better organization to advocate for oral health than the American Dental Association.”

An active leader in the dental community at the local, state and national levels, Dr. Cohlmia served on the ADA Board of Trustees from 2015-19 and as president of the Oklahoma Dental Association in 2001 and his local dental society in 1997. He has led the ADA New Dentist Committee and Council on Membership, serving as chair in 1999 and 2007, respectively. Additional ADA appointments over the years include the Council on Annual Sessions, the Council on Dental Benefits, and the American Dental Political Action Committee. Dr. Cohlmia has also represented his district as a delegate to the ADA’s House of Delegates, the governing body that develops ADA policies.

Dr. Cohlmia earned his dental degree in 1988 from the OU College of Dentistry. He currently resides in northwest Oklahoma City with his wife, Sherry, and has three children.

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In January 2021, the IDA Board of Trustees approved a request to develop a new logo for the IDA. The current logo has served the organization well since 1997, but the Board agreed that the IDA needed a more modern look, with simpler graphics that reproduce consistently across different media. In addition, the former design wasn’t adaptable to the IDA’s many entities, which created an inconsistent appearance across our organization.

The new logo and the logo for our entities and programs were unveiled on May 15 at the House of Delegates during the 2021 Midwest Dental Assembly. Below is an explanation of the process behind the new design, as well as a compilation of all our new logos. The design concept was created by Whiteboard Marketing in Columbus, Ohio, which has worked with a number of state dental associations around the country.

Over the next few months we’ll be replacing our publications, online resources and other materials with our new logo. We hope you like the new IDA look as much as we do!

 

 

The Indiana General Assembly recessed last week after introducing 1,011 bills and enacting 220 (22 percent). The legislature sent a $37.4 billion two-year balanced budget ($900M for future infrastructure projects, $500M for regional grants, $250M for broadband, $60M for small business restart grants, $32.7M for 21st Century Research and Technology Fund), expansion of telehealth, police reforms, and civil immunity related to COVID-19 to Gov. Eric Holcomb’s desk.

Congratulations to Dr. Steve Holm and the IDA Governmental Affairs Committee on the successful passage of IDA-backed bill House Enrolled Act 1079. The bill updates the definition of dentistry, allows dentists the option to administer vaccines, and requires third party payers to disclose any transaction fees associated with a virtual credit card reimbursement and offer an alternative method if requested.

The General Assembly’s work is not yet complete! As census data from the U.S. Census Bureau begins to pour in, legislators will soon be called back to the Statehouse to redraw state and federal legislative districts. This “redrawing of the maps” takes place every 10 years following a census.

This legislative session was certainly a strange one. The COVID-19 pandemic made us all re-imagine how public policy is crafted. In the end, the legislature finished their official business early while successfully avoiding a “super spreader” catastrophe.

Thank you to all of our membership who took the time to contact their legislators to help ensure smooth passage of HEA1079!

 

Notable IDA-Supported Legislation

 

House Enrolled Act 1079: Definition of Dentistry/Vaccines/Virtual Claims

Signed by the Governor (4/8/2021)

HEA1079 allows Indiana dentists the option to administer a wide variety of vaccines to patients 11 and older for a variety of conditions, including COVID-19. The bill also modernizes Indiana’s definition of dentistry, limiting liability risk by lessening the chance a dentist practicing within standards of care could be charged with providing treatment outside of his or her legal scope of practice.

Lastly, HEA1079 requires third parties to disclose of any transaction fees associated with a virtual credit card reimbursement and offer an alternative method if requested.

 

Senate Enrolled Act 1: Civil Immunity Related to COVID-19

Signed by the Governor (2/18/2021)

SEA 1 provides retroactive civil immunity to businesses, schools, churches, not-for-profit organizations and individuals for damages if someone is exposed to COVID-19 on their property or during an activity they organized.

Providing liability protection was a priority of Governor Holcomb as businesses — especially local small businesses — fight to remain open and keep people employed during this pandemic.

The law is retroactive to March 1, 2020, and helps protect Hoosier businesses against frivolous lawsuits.

 

Senate Enrolled Act 3: Telehealth Matters
Signed by the Governor (4/20/2021)

SB 3 codified many of the expansions in telehealth implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic to ensure all Hoosiers have access to the health care they need regardless of where they live.

This legislation puts legal safeguards in place for Hoosiers receiving virtual care and requires telehealth medical records to be created and maintained under the same standards of practice for patients in an in-person setting. The bill also expands the application of the telehealth statute to include more licensed practitioners and specify the various activities that would qualify as health care services under telehealth law.

 

Legislation Opposed by the IDA

 

Senate Bill 330: Dental Therapists

Status: Author pulled bill at the request of the IDA

The IDA was able to work with SB 330 bill author Sen. Ron Grooms to have this bill pulled during session. Experimental dental therapy programs in the U.S. have failed to significantly improve access to care. Though well-intentioned, it is a flawed concept that puts an extra step between the underserved populations and a dentist by creating a two-tiered, class-based system of care.

All Hoosiers, regardless of socioeconomic status, deserve quality dental care from the highest trained professionals. We look forward to working with Sen. Grooms and other members of the Indiana General Assembly to improve access to care for all.

 

Get Involved

Always your eyes and ears at the statehouse, the IDA will always advocate on behalf of dentistry in Indiana.

If you are not already a Contact Dentist, we can use your help, especially if you have an existing relationship with your legislator, or are willing to establish one.

If you have questions or concerns, contact IDA Director of Government Affairs Shane Springer at the email link below or by phone at 317-634-2610.

 

Contact IDA Director of Government Affairs Shane Springer

Donate to IDPAC

Sign up for our Legislative Alerts

 

 

The IDA Board of Trustees has entered an agreement with IndepenDENT Dental Solutions (IDS), a group purchasing organization to provide all IDA members with access to lower, contracted pricing for capital equipment, dental supplies and other purchased services.

“IDS has been successfully working with three of IDA’s component dental societies for two years,” said IDA Executive Director Doug Bush. “This new arrangement expands the benefits statewide, allowing all our members access to discounted supplies and equipment.”

IDS has agreements with a robust network of vendor partners, including Indiana-based Midway Dental, to ensure private practices have access to the tools and support needed to not only survive, but thrive.

Visit our IndepenDENT Dental Solutions page to learn more.

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Dentists will soon be able to more directly assist in the battle against COVID-19 and other infectious diseases.

On Tuesday, March 16, the Senate unanimously approved HB 1079, an IDA-supported bill that allows dentists with proper training to administer vaccines. Last month the bill was overwhelmingly approved by the Indiana House, so it will soon be on its way to the governor’s office for his signature. Unlike most new laws that go into effect on July 1, this bill was given emergency status, allowing it to go into effect as soon as the governor signs it.

The bill addresses other important issues. It modernizes Indiana’s definition of dentistry, bringing it into closer alignment with language recommended by the American Dental Association. This expanded definition limits liability risk by lessening the chance a dentist practicing within standards of care could be charged with providing treatment outside of his or her legal scope of practice.

The bill also addresses virtual credit card (VCC) payments, prohibiting insurance companies from using  VCCs as their only method of making claims payment to dentists. A 2020 survey of IDA members indicated that 61 percent of dentists felt VCCs were problematic, primarily due to their large transaction fees. The newly passed legislation requires insurance companies to offer dentists at least one alternative to VCC dental claims payments.

The change in Indiana law vaccine law comes on the heels of a March 11, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) emergency declaration extending civil liability protection to dentists and dental students who are vaccinating patients for COVID-19.

Overview of Vaccine Administration

The general stipulations of the vaccination language in HB 1079 include:

• Patients must be 11 or older.
• The dentist must be certified in CPR.
• The dentist must complete a course of vaccine instruction approved by the Indiana State Board of Dentistry. One option is the CDC’s You Call the Shots course: www.cdc.gov/vaccines/ed/youcalltheshots.html
• Only licensed dentists may administer vaccines to patients.

 

Our Vaccine Administration Guidelines booklet has more information about education, reporting guidelines and approved vaccines.

Approved Vaccines

There are 20 vaccines that dentists may administer to patients 11 and older. To view the full list, view our Vaccine Administration Guidelines booklet.

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