SB2846 makes targeted changes to the Illinois Dental Practice Act governing licensure and scope of practice in dentistry. For dentist applicants, it updates the list of acceptable clinical examinations for licensure, replacing the older list of regional testing services with a narrower set of recognized exams and adding a transition rule that preserves eligibility for applicants who passed certain exams before January 1, 2026. It also clarifies that applicants who have passed the integrated National Board Dental Examination and an approved clinical exam may apply for licensure, and it retains the Department’s authority to suspend a testing service if exam integrity is compromised or the exam is fundamentally deficient.
The bill also revises the dental hygienist licensure section in parallel, updating acceptable clinical examinations and adding the same grandfathering provision for certain exams completed before January 1, 2026. In addition, it expands and clarifies the rules for expanded function dental assistants by specifying the procedures they may perform, the training sources that qualify them, and the requirement for Basic Life Support certification. The bill emphasizes that these duties must be performed under dentist supervision and does not change the number of assistants a dentist may supervise. The act takes effect July 1, 2026.
Impact
SB2846 amends Sections 9, 13, and 17.1 of the Illinois Dental Practice Act, affecting licensure standards for dentists and dental hygienists and the regulation of expanded function dental assistants. It updates statutory references to acceptable exam providers, adds a temporary eligibility window for applicants who completed certain regional exams before January 1, 2026, and codifies supervision, training, and certification requirements for expanded function dental assistants. These changes primarily affect applicants for dental and dental hygiene licenses, the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation, dental schools, testing organizations, and supervising dentists.
Sentiment
The bill appears generally supportive of modernization and standardization in dental licensure and assistant training, with no recorded committee transcript or vote history indicating opposition or controversy. Its structure suggests a technical regulatory update intended to align Illinois with current national and regional dental testing practices and to clarify permissible assistant functions. The absence of recorded votes or discussion makes the overall sentiment difficult to measure beyond the bill text itself, but the measure reads as administrative and professional-practice oriented rather than ideologically contentious.
Contention
The main potential points of contention are the narrowing and updating of acceptable clinical licensing examinations and the transition rule tied to January 1, 2026, which could affect applicants who took older regional exams. Dental professionals or educators may also focus on the expanded function dental assistant provisions, especially the scope of procedures allowed, supervision requirements, and the mandatory Basic Life Support certification. The Department retains discretion to approve training programs and suspend testing services, which could also be a point of concern for affected testing organizations and license applicants.