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Legislation & Litigation
From the States LEGISLATION
& LITIG A TIO N
LEGISLATION The end of the year lull in state legislative ac tivity is reflected in this m onth’s report. Only tw o new laws o f interest to dentistry emerged. The C onnecticut dental law was amended to
sive mold. In addition to defining the precise circumstances within which a physician-assistant may function, the new law specifies services that he may not perform including the “ practice of dentistry or dental hygiene.”
exem pt certain experim ental program s relat ed to the delivery o f dental services. A Massa chusetts physician-assistant law specifically prohibits the new medical auxiliaries from practicing dentistry.
Connecticut ■ In at least a few states, the dental associations and boards of dentistry have questioned the legality of certain experimental programs con ducted by dental schools, specifically those programs having to do with ex panded functions of auxiliaries. In Connecticut, the question is resolved by concise language exempting from the dental law and its sanctions “ con trolled investigations or innovative training programs related to the deliv ery o f dental health services within ac credited dental schools or schools of dental hygiene, provided such pro grams are under the supervision o f a li censed dentist or physician.” Massachusetts ■ Physician-assistant laws vary from brief amendments to medical practice acts granting physi cians authority to delegate procedures to qualified assistants, to extensive provisions spelling out in detail the na ture of a physician-assistant’s role in medical practice and his qualifica tions. The new Massachusetts physi cian-assistant law fits the comprehen
LITIGATION The Am erican Dental Association has brought suit against the federal Cost o f Living Council to nullify the arbitrary and inequitable health provider regulations governing increases in dental fees. A North C arolina case illustrates a de ntist's well-advised patient referral to a physician.
ADA contests Cost of Living Council regulations in federal district court in Washington, DC ■ The Association filed a complaint against the Cost of Living Council on Oct 25, 1973. The complaint asks for a declaratory judg ment setting aside pertinent sections of the health provider regulations and particularly the section that makes dentists ineligible for exemption as small business establishments. The A D A complaint also requests the court to enjoin COLC from further im position o f the health provider regula tions on dentists. (A m erican D ental A ssociation vs D unlop, D irector C O L C , Civil Action N o. 1964-73, Fed Dis Ct for District of Columbia.)
Federal court in Nebraska denies pre liminary injunction against Cost of Living Council meat regulations ■ The plaintiff, a beef processor, protested the singling out of beef and veal for price freezes while other meat prod ucts received price relief. The court did not decide the merits of the plain tiff’s claim but did refuse the immedi ate relief from the price freeze sought by the plaintiff. (M inden B e e f Co. v.v C ost o f Living C ouncil, 362 F Supp 208, 1973.)
North Carolina supreme court case in volves referral from dentist to physi cian ■ The plaintiffs 17-year-old daughter had a tooth extracted. Short ly after the operation she complained of a headache. The dentist was called by telephone, and he advised the mother to consult with a physician. Despite a succession of visits to the hospital emergency quarters, the pa tient became unconscious and died six days later. The alleged malpractice was the physician’s failure to pre scribe a drug for the patient’s infec tious condition. The trial court refused to permit plaintiff’s expert witness, a physician pathologist, to give an opin ion based on hypothetical questions. The court of appeals sustained the trial court, but the North Carolina su preme court reversed, ruling that the pathologist, though not a community practitioner at the time of the event, could testify as an expert. (D ickens vs Everhart, 199 SE 2d, 440, 1973.) JADA, Vol. 8 8 , January 1974 ■ 19
& LITIG A TIO N
LEGISLATION The end of the year lull in state legislative ac tivity is reflected in this m onth’s report. Only tw o new laws o f interest to dentistry emerged. The C onnecticut dental law was amended to
sive mold. In addition to defining the precise circumstances within which a physician-assistant may function, the new law specifies services that he may not perform including the “ practice of dentistry or dental hygiene.”
exem pt certain experim ental program s relat ed to the delivery o f dental services. A Massa chusetts physician-assistant law specifically prohibits the new medical auxiliaries from practicing dentistry.
Connecticut ■ In at least a few states, the dental associations and boards of dentistry have questioned the legality of certain experimental programs con ducted by dental schools, specifically those programs having to do with ex panded functions of auxiliaries. In Connecticut, the question is resolved by concise language exempting from the dental law and its sanctions “ con trolled investigations or innovative training programs related to the deliv ery o f dental health services within ac credited dental schools or schools of dental hygiene, provided such pro grams are under the supervision o f a li censed dentist or physician.” Massachusetts ■ Physician-assistant laws vary from brief amendments to medical practice acts granting physi cians authority to delegate procedures to qualified assistants, to extensive provisions spelling out in detail the na ture of a physician-assistant’s role in medical practice and his qualifica tions. The new Massachusetts physi cian-assistant law fits the comprehen
LITIGATION The Am erican Dental Association has brought suit against the federal Cost o f Living Council to nullify the arbitrary and inequitable health provider regulations governing increases in dental fees. A North C arolina case illustrates a de ntist's well-advised patient referral to a physician.
ADA contests Cost of Living Council regulations in federal district court in Washington, DC ■ The Association filed a complaint against the Cost of Living Council on Oct 25, 1973. The complaint asks for a declaratory judg ment setting aside pertinent sections of the health provider regulations and particularly the section that makes dentists ineligible for exemption as small business establishments. The A D A complaint also requests the court to enjoin COLC from further im position o f the health provider regula tions on dentists. (A m erican D ental A ssociation vs D unlop, D irector C O L C , Civil Action N o. 1964-73, Fed Dis Ct for District of Columbia.)
Federal court in Nebraska denies pre liminary injunction against Cost of Living Council meat regulations ■ The plaintiff, a beef processor, protested the singling out of beef and veal for price freezes while other meat prod ucts received price relief. The court did not decide the merits of the plain tiff’s claim but did refuse the immedi ate relief from the price freeze sought by the plaintiff. (M inden B e e f Co. v.v C ost o f Living C ouncil, 362 F Supp 208, 1973.)
North Carolina supreme court case in volves referral from dentist to physi cian ■ The plaintiffs 17-year-old daughter had a tooth extracted. Short ly after the operation she complained of a headache. The dentist was called by telephone, and he advised the mother to consult with a physician. Despite a succession of visits to the hospital emergency quarters, the pa tient became unconscious and died six days later. The alleged malpractice was the physician’s failure to pre scribe a drug for the patient’s infec tious condition. The trial court refused to permit plaintiff’s expert witness, a physician pathologist, to give an opin ion based on hypothetical questions. The court of appeals sustained the trial court, but the North Carolina su preme court reversed, ruling that the pathologist, though not a community practitioner at the time of the event, could testify as an expert. (D ickens vs Everhart, 199 SE 2d, 440, 1973.) JADA, Vol. 8 8 , January 1974 ■ 19