Are You In Compliance?

The July issue of the CDA Journal provides a COVID-19 vaccine toolkit with multiple resources dentists can use in their practice. New research on prosthesis design and TMJ is also explored. Read the digital issue.

The California Legislature approved a state budget for the 2021-22 fiscal year that upholds the will of the voters when they passed the Proposition 56 tobacco tax in 2016. The budget makes significant investments in Medi-Cal Dental improvements, workforce development and coronavirus relief. 

Update: The Cal/OSHA Standards Board voted to withdraw the revisions to its COVID-19 prevention emergency temporary standards that the board approved June 3 and sent to the OAL for review. The board met again June 17 and approved new changes to the standards that took effect the same day after Gov. Gavin Newsom signed an executive order.

Cal/OSHA's current regulations on COVID-19-related screening, testing and quarantining apply to dentists, dental team members and other health care workers in California who are fully vaccinated against the novel coronavirus, as well as to fully vaccinated patients who enter health care settings.

Dentists have contacted CDA Practice Support with questions about a letter they received from the California Department of Industrial Relations that provides “a list of critical requirements related to COVID-19” that may apply to the business owner and workplace. 

COVID-19’s impact on dentistry remains a top advocacy priority for CDA, and a new bill that CDA is co-sponsoring with the California Medical Association would help to safeguard health care providers’ financial stability during future state emergencies like the current pandemic.

Organized dentistry is making it easier for dentists across California to support COVID-19 vaccination efforts. Local dental societies have been working with local health departments to get dentists and their staff members vaccinated, and dentists are volunteering their time and skills at vaccination clinics in their communities. 

In addition to funding California’s COVID-19 recovery and vaccination efforts and proposing several billion dollars to tackle homelessness and help schools reopen, the state budget proposal released Jan. 8 supports improvements in oral health care delivery and access to dental services.

Researchers are examining the link between periodontal disease and COVID-19-related respiratory complications, and early research findings suggest that dental professionals may need to shift their focus to preventing underlying conditions, such as periodontitis, that promote systemic inflammation.

Three California dentists discuss how HHS' Provider Relief Fund payments have helped them cover COVID-19-related expenses and revenue loss. Two of the dentists applied for Phase-3 add-on payments.