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Happy New Year from the CDHA Government Relations Council!
The Legislature has kicked off it's 2019-20 Session. Legislators are back in Sacramento Mondays to Thursdays and are building their legislative bill packages. Governor Newsom has been inaugurated and has introduced his first state budget proposal. The budget he presented includes $260 million to expand full-scope Medi-Cal coverage to eligible young adults aged 19 through 25 starting July 1, 2019. For more information regarding health spending, see the Budget Summary (page 61) http://www.ebudget.ca.gov/2019-20/pdf/BudgetSummary/FullBudgetSummary.pdf
In the coming months, the Legislature and Governor will negotiate budget priorities along with a host of bills, including some affecting dental hygienists. Stay tuned!
CDHA is working to get legislative fixes to several areas of the Dental Practice Act this year. Proposed language for a bill has been drafted. We have tackled some of these issues before, but attitudes are changing and it's a new Legislature and a new year. It is uncertain how the new Governor will react to these ideas. However, these items increase patients' access to the preventive oral healthcare that you provide, benefit both our profession and the public, and are worth the continued effort. Let's make it happen!! We will keep you updated on the progress we make this year.
Great upcoming events to start 2019 - Labor Law update in Walnut Creek in February and CDHA Legislative Day in Sacramento in March. Read on for more details on these events and our planned legislation.
Legislative updates are sent once a month to keep members up to date with the GRC and lobbyists activities.
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Labor Law Seminar
Saturday, February 2, 2019
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Walnut Creek, CA
2.5 CEUs
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Learn What's New for 2019 and Understanding the Employer's Responsibility to their Employees
Schedule:
8:00 a.m. - 8:30 a.m.:
Registration, Marketplace and Continental Breakfast
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9:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m.:
Labor Law Seminar
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8:30 a.m. - 9:00 a.m.:
Opening Remarks and Product Review Session with Crest Oral-B
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11:00 a.m. - 11:30 a.m.:
Closing Remarks, Raffle, Networking and Marketplace
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Location:
Walnut Creek Library
Oak View Room
1644 N Broadway
Walnut Creek, CA 94596
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Labor Law Registration:
| Members: $45 |
Non-Members: $75 |
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Legislative Day - March 26, 2019
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CDHA Legislative Day
Join us on March 26, for the CDHA 2019 Legislative Day.
A
dvocate on behalf of your profession and yourself!
Educate your legislators about California dental hygienists, how your services improve the health of Californians, and save the state money. Your efforts will support the
bill
CDHA is
sponsoring
and advance your career and profession
.
When:
Tuesday. March 26th, 2019
Where:
California State Capitol
1315 10th Street
Sacramento, CA 95814
Who Should Attend?
Any member interested in learning more about the legislative process, who would like to help promote oral health, and advance the profession of dental hygiene and their career opportunities, this is the event for you! You will be meeting your legislators alongside fellow California RDHs and RDHAPs.
Goals:
*Learn about the legislative process
*Advocate effectively for dental hygienists
*Communicate the priority legislative issues facing dental hygienists
*Collaborate with colleagues to create legislative solutions
First time at a Legislative Day? No worries - CDHA takes care of all logistics ...
The program will begin at 9:00 am with an orientation. No need to worry about what to say! You will be provided with a unified message, talking points and an agenda. A mentoring session with speakers will take place in the morning and your appointments with legislators will be scheduled for you in the afternoon. You won't be alone and will be meeting your legislators alongside fellow colleagues. This important day will conclude with a reception at Aaron Read & Associates (CDHA Legislative Advocates) across the street from the Capitol.
RSVP:
There is no charge to participate but we need the following information to arrange meetings with your legislators. To RSVP, email the following to [email protected]:
1) Name
2) Phone
3) Home zip code
The deadline to RSVP is Friday, March 1st, 2019 by 5:00 p.m.
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As of January 1, 2019, the Dental Hygiene Committee of California is officially the Dental Hygiene Board of California
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It's celebration time...
Effective January 1, 2019, the Dental Hygiene Committee of California (DHCC) became the Dental Hygiene Board of California (DHBC). A hundred years of advocacy and growth have led us to this milestone for the profession of dental hygiene. California hygienists have now achieved all the hallmarks that define a true profession: a group of people in a learned occupation following a set of rules, working for the public good, self regulating and in control of their education.
CDHA has worked closely with the CA legislature and Aaron Read and Associates to bring yet another unique change to the oversight of the RDH profession in CA.
Dental Board Meeting, Nov 29-30, 2018
The Dental Board of California, at their November meeting, did not advance the proposal to allow RDAEF2s to administer local anesthesia and nitrous oxide sedation. Strong opposition continues to be voiced by many including CDHA. The DBC will review this proposal further along with the Office of Professional Education Services (OPES).
New on the agenda, the DBC discussed possible statutory changes to allow RDAEFs to use any materials or device for procedures within their scope of practice. This change was opposed by CDHA, the American Academy of General Dentistry, as well as the majority of the Board. The matter was referred to staff for further research and CDHA will be on alert should the proposal resurface.
The next DBC meeting will be in La Jolla on February 7-8. The location, agenda and meeting materials should be posted soon on dbc.ca.gov.
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CDHA Legislation to Amend the Dental Practice Act in 2019
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CDHA plans to sponsor legislation in 2019 to amend the Dental Practic Act to increase access to the services of dental hygienists and improve the public's health. Specifically, CDHA seeks to
expand practice settings where RDH and RDHAPs can work including in medical offices and facilities, remove some supervision restrictions, and allow RDHAPs to keep their established practices in Dental Health Professional Shortage Areas if the shortage designation is removed.
A CDHA letter to the Dental Hygiene Committee of California outlining our proposals was included in the DHCC's November meeting. The DHCC expressed support and provided CDHA with input
prioritizing
which amendments would be of greatest benefit to the public. Stay tuned for the bill number!
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YOUR LEGISLATORS - YOUR VOICE
Legislators like to know who their constituents are (You). At past CDHA legislative days, we have been told our presence in the Sacramento Capitol makes a difference!
Join us on March 26 at the Capitol! The more "faces" legislators can put to dental hygiene, the more likely they are to listen and hear what we have to say and support our bill!
Can't join us in Sacramento? Strengthen your relationship with your legislators at home. Say hello at casual greet and meets or coffee chats, or send a letter to their office. Tell them your name, that you're a registered dental hygienist in their district, that you're interested in improving access to oral healthcare for Californians.
For your legislator's local address or to find out when and where their next meet and greet will be, go to "
findyourrep.legislature.ca.gov", input your zip code and follow the links.
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RDHAP Legislative Update - Good News!
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UPDATE ON 9920 Denti-Cal Code...
As previously reported, a new Denti-Cal Code provides additional reimbursement when serving patients with special needs! It has come to our attention that, when submitting claims for reimbursement, you will need to include the patient's Medical Condition code in the comment section to validate the extra time needed.
More Dental Professionals in Humbolt County to Accept Denti-Cal
Per a press release from the Dept. of Health and Human Services (DHHS), a Local Dental Pilot Project Grant will provide scholarships to six local Registered Dental Hygienists in Humboldt County so they can become RDHAPs.
Per the DHHS, this scholarship project will improve access to oral health care. CDHA President-Elect Darla Dale is quoted as saying:
"Certainly RDHAPs can clean teeth, but they can do so much more to keep smiles healthy."
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Liberty Dental Accepts RDHAP Providers
Liberty Dental Plan now accepts RDHAPs as
providers in its network, and have an AP page on their website!
Jessica Salazar-Olivares, Liberty Network Manager Provider Relations, is available for any RDHAP with questions or to help complete the necessary paperwork. Jessica can be contacted directly via E-mail at
[email protected] or reached via phone at
888-273-2997 x 273 (office), 949-232-2505 (mobile), 5:00 am- 5:00 pm. PST, Monday through Friday.
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LAO Report Supports Expanding AP Scope
California's Legislative Analysts's Office (LAO) released a report "Improving Access to Dental Services for Individuals with Developmental Disabilities. This report analyzes the challenges and considers options and recommendations including expanding the scope for RDHAPs.
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CalHyPAC:
Keeping Our Political Voice Strong
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CalHyPAC is the California Dental Hygienists' Association's Political Action Committee, a separate entity from the CDHA.
The PAC establishes relationships with California legislators who believe that dental hygienists are an important and essential part of the health care system. We support candidates for the California Legislature who believe in our interests, concerns and goals.
CalHyPAC is an essential part of CDHA's government affairs program and is the only political action committee that represents California dental hygienists.
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