Are You In Compliance?

Dental practices, including those that are exempt or want to claim an exemption to the requirement to install an amalgam separator, must submit a one-time compliance report to their local control authority. The report is available in most areas from the local sanitation agency. If a sanitation agency does not have a pretreatment program, then the dental practice must submit the report to the California State Water Resources Board.

Read more in this news article.

On July 1, 2020, minimum wage increases take effect in several California localities and require updated postings. Employers in Santa Rosa should be aware of a new increase and required notice effective July 1, 2020.

See Minimum Wage and Paid Sick Leave Ordinances by City/County on cda.org

On or before April 1, 2020, employers must post or provide the new Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) notice to employees.

Each covered employer must post a notice of the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) requirements notice in a conspicuous place on its premises. An employer may satisfy this requirement by emailing or direct mailing this notice to employees, or posting this notice on an employee information internal or external website.

Download the notice on the DOL website. 

More information to come

SB 501 established new requirements for dentists administering or ordering the administration of general anesthesia, deep sedation and minimal sedation. The new requirements are expected to become effective Jan. 1, 2022. Review a summary of those requirements in Sedation and Anesthesia Permits.

The program is expanding to offer benefits to any employee who takes time off to attend to situations (qualifying exigencies) related to the covered active duty status of the employee’s spouse, registered domestic partner, child or parent who is a member of the U.S. Armed Forces. This new law does not create a right to take a protected leave of absence, merely the ability to collect PFL benefits (after Jan. 1, 2021) if the employee does take the time off.

Prescribers in need of new controlled substance prescription forms should ensure they order from an approved printer listed on the DOJ website. New prescription forms with serial numbers formatted in the manner prescribed by SB 149 may be available by early to mid-2020. Confirm with the printer that the form meets California’s serial number requirements for 2021 before ordering forms. Consider moving to e-prescribing for controlled substances which is expected to be mandatory January 1, 2022.

Dental facilities without amalgam separators on June 14, 2017, with exceptions, must install an amalgam separator by this date and comply with documentation requirements. Separators must be compliant with either the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) American National Standard/American Dental Association (ADA) Specification 108 for Amalgam Separators (2009) With Technical Addendum (2011) or the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 11143 Standard (2008) or subsequent versions so long as that version requires amalgam separators to achieve at least a 95 percent removal efficiency.

The benefit available through California’s State Disability Service program provides wage replacement to workers who take time off from work for an ill child, spouse, parent, grandparent, sibling, or domestic partner, or to bond with a child within one year of birth or adoption. Employers should update practice policies to reflect the increase.

A dental practice that offers patients the option of using a third-party credit program for treatment payment must comply with new requirements. A news article and updated California Commercial Credit Law resource are forthcoming.

As of Jan. 31, 2020, employers should begin using the Form I-9. The new version is dated 10/21/2019 but will not become mandatory until May 1. 

Employers with at least five employees must provide: (1) at least two hours of sexual harassment prevention training to all managerial employees; and (2) at least one hour of sexual harassment prevention training to all non-managerial employees in California by January 1, 2020. SB 1343

All employers must provide a private lactation location other than a bathroom, near the employee's work area. This new law requires the location to have certain mandatory features, requires employers to have a written lactation accommodation policy, changes the ability to claim an exemption, and expands the available penalties.

The minimum wage for a large employer with 26 or more employees in California will increase from $12 per hour to $13 per hour, and employers with 25 or fewer employees will increase from $11 per hour to $12 per hour on Jan. 1, 2020. Some cities and counties have their own ordinances beyond what is required by state law, with more expected to follow. CDA provides a guide to minimum wage ordinances by city and county and employers are advised to check with their local jurisdictions to ensure they are in compliance.

A dental practice that administers general anesthesia or deep or moderate sedation must use a written informed consent form that includes language specified in AB 1622 which the governor signed October 2019. Check out CDA's news article for more information, and access updated informed consent forms from the Practice Support Resource Library.

EPA’s newest rule requires healthcare facilities and other businesses that generate pharmaceutical hazardous waste to properly dispose of the waste. The first part of the rule, the prohibition on “sewering” hazardous pharmaceutical waste, is effective August 21. All nonhazardous pharmaceutical waste that are not controlled substances must be disposed as regulated medical waste. See Dental Office Waste Management Options.

The following cities and county will increase their minimum wage on July 1: Alameda, Berkeley, Emeryville, Fremont, City of Los Angeles, County of Los Angeles (unincorporated areas only), Malibu, Milpitas, Pasadena, San Francisco, San Leandro and Santa Monica.

Employers are required to post the updated and renamed Family Care and Medical Leave and Pregnancy Disability Leave notice (DFEH-100-21 / March 2019). Formerly known as, the Family Care and Medical Leave (CFRA Leave) and Pregnancy Disability notice. Effective April 1, 2019, California employers covered by the California Family Rights Act (CFRA) and the NPLA are required to post this new notice. Employers with 20 to 49 employees will need to post the Family Care and Medical Leave and Pregnancy Disability Leave notice in their workplace, and employers with 50 or more employees will need to replace their existing notice with the new version.

Dentists who order or provide Medicare-covered items and services (clinical laboratory services, imaging services or durable medical equipment, prosthetics, orthotics and supplies) will need to either enroll in Medicare using form CMS-855-I (PDF) or the shorter enrollment form CMS-855-O (PDF) or formally opt out of Medicare by Jan. 1, 2019. To assure one's status with Medicare and that patients' Medicare benefits do not lapse, dentists should allow sufficient time for processing whichever form is submitted. Learn more about enrollment requirements by visiting the ADA’s Facts and FAQ on Medicare.