TOPEKA, Kan. (WIBW) – A bill currently in the Senate could make it easier for dental professionals to practice across state lines.
HB 2453, otherwise known as the Dentist and Dental Hygienists Licensure Compact, would establish an interstate compact that gives dental professionals privileges to work in other states.
Between 2019 and 2022, Kansas saw a nearly five percent increase in the number of dental professionals in the state.
“With our border states where we have more in-migration than any other state,” says Kevin Robertson, executive director of the Kansas Dental Association.
Historically a dentistry license only applies to the state in which it was granted and working outside that state would require additional licensure, which each state decides on its own.
“For example, right now, if you’re a dentist practicing in Kansas, and I want to go to Missouri for example, I have to have a Missouri license,” Robertson explains. “It’s not like a driver’s license where you can just go over state lines.”
HB 2453 aims to change that by enacting an interstate compact.
“It would allow the states, or dentists in the states, that passed this compact to more freely move in and out or to reciprocate with their licensure,” he says.
Source: Legislature considers bill to enact interstate dentistry compact / WIBW