§ 809 - Disciplinary proceedings - Vermont Statutes

§ 809. Disciplinary proceedings

(a) Grounds for discipline: The board may refuse to give an examination or issue a license to practice dentistry or dental hygiene, and may suspend or revoke any such license, or otherwise discipline a licensee, for any of the following reasons and for any of the reasons set forth in section 129a of Title 3:

(1) abandonment of a patient;

(2) addiction to narcotics, habitual drunkenness or rendering professional services to a patient if the dentist or hygienist is intoxicated or under the influence of drugs;

(3) promotion by a dentist or hygienist of the sale of drugs, devices, appliances or goods provided for a patient in a manner to exploit the patient for financial gain of the dentist or hygienist or selling, prescribing, giving away or administering drugs for other than legal and legitimate therapeutic purposes;

(4) immoral conduct of a dentist or hygienist in their respective practices;

(5) solicitation of professional patronage by agents or persons, or profiting from the acts of those representing themselves to be agents of the licensed dentist or hygienist;

(6) division of fees or agreeing to split or divide the fees received for professional services for any person for bringing to or referring a patient;

(7) willful misrepresentation in treatments;

(8) practicing dentistry or dental hygiene with a dentist or hygienist who is not legally practicing within the state, or aiding or abetting such dentist or hygienist in the practice of dentistry or dental hygiene, except in accordance with this chapter and the rules of the board;

(9) gross and deceptive overcharging for professional services on repeated occasions, including filing of false statements for collection of fees for which services are not rendered;

(10) offering, undertaking or agreeing to practice by a secret method, procedure, treatment or medicine;

(11) consistent improper utilization of services;

(12) consistent use of unaccepted procedures which have a consistent detrimental effect upon patients;

(13) permitting one's name, license or registration to be used by a person, group, or corporation when not actually in charge of or responsible for the treatment given;

(14) in the course of practice, gross failure to use and exercise on a particular occasion or the failure to use and exercise on repeated occasions, that degree of care, skill and proficiency which is commonly exercised by the ordinary skillful, careful and prudent dentist or dental hygienist engaged in similar practice under the same or similar conditions, whether or not actual injury to a patient has occurred and whether or not committed within or without the state;

(15) practicing or maintaining a dental office in a manner so as to endanger the health or safety of the public;

(16) no licensed dentist may hold himself out to the public as being especially qualified in any branch of dentistry by announcing through the press, sign, card, spoken word, letterhead or printed matter, or any means of public advertising using such terms as "specialist", or inserting the name of the specialty, or using other phrases customarily used by qualified specialists that would imply to the public that he is so qualified, without first having met the educational standards set by the Commission on Accreditation of Dental and Dental Auxiliary Programs of the American Dental Association or without being eligible to take the A.D.A. approved certifying board in that specialty. This section shall not be construed as limiting or preventing a duly licensed and qualified dentist from performing, without being a specialist, dental acts or services to the public in any branch of dentistry.

(b) When a license is revoked, the revocation shall be recorded with the director of the office of professional regulation. (Amended 1969, No. 81, § 17; 1977, No. 255 (Adj. Sess.), § 1; 1989, No. 250 (Adj. Sess.), § 4(d); 1997, No. 145 (Adj. Sess.), § 35.)