An Act Allowing Dental Hygienists To Provide Dental Hygiene Services In Private Residences.
Summary
HB05303 revises Connecticut’s dental hygiene statute to expressly allow licensed dental hygienists with at least two years of practice experience to provide dental hygiene services in private residences, in addition to certain public health facilities, if they comply with the bill’s supervision, referral, and continuing-education requirements. The bill also updates and restates the scope of dental hygiene practice, including preventive and therapeutic services, and preserves the requirement that hygienists work under general supervision of a licensed dentist unless they qualify for the bill’s expanded public-health/private-residence practice authority.
The measure keeps important limits in place. Dental hygienists may not diagnose, cut or remove tissue, prescribe medications, perform general or inhalation anesthesia, take certain impressions for prostheses, or place and finish restorations. It also continues to authorize local anesthesia only under indirect supervision, with specified training requirements. The bill requires hygienists practicing in private residences to refer patients outside their scope of practice to dentists and coordinate that referral, and it maintains continuing-education, renewal, reinstatement, and student-practice rules. The act takes effect October 1, 2026.
Impact
The bill amends General Statutes section 20-126l, expanding the settings in which certain licensed dental hygienists may practice from public health facilities to include private residences. It affects the Department of Public Health’s licensing and renewal oversight, the supervision rules for dental hygiene practice, and the statutory definitions governing what services hygienists may perform. It also has practical implications for homebound patients, seniors, people with disabilities, community health providers, and dentists who may receive referrals from hygienists working outside traditional office settings.
Sentiment
The available legislative history suggests a positive and noncontroversial reception. The bill received a 14-0 Joint Favorable vote in committee, indicating unanimous support among voting members. No committee transcript excerpts were provided, but the vote pattern suggests broad agreement with the bill’s access-to-care goals and its continued safeguards around supervision and scope of practice.
Contention
No major opposition is reflected in the provided materials. The main policy issue implicit in the bill is the balance between expanding access to dental hygiene services in private homes and preserving patient safety through supervision, training, and referral requirements. Any concern would likely center on whether allowing hygienists to work in residences could blur professional boundaries or reduce direct dentist oversight, but the bill addresses that by limiting the authority to experienced hygienists and by retaining significant practice restrictions.