Gov. Peter Shumlin has signed a bill that allows dental therapists to practice in Vermont.
Shumlin signed S 20 on June 2, which requires current dental hygienists to complete both an additional year of classes and 1,000 clinical training hours before practicing as a dental therapist.
Vermont House Speaker Shap Smith (D-Morristown) said the bill will increase access to care for poor people.
"Studies have suggested a correlation between dental health and economic success," Smith said in a statement in April when the bill passed the Vermont House of Representatives. "Unfortunately, too few low-income and uninsured Vermonters have access to quality dental care. Dental therapists will work alongside dentists and dental hygienists to treat patients, similar to how physician assistants have increased the number of healthcare providers in doctors' offices around the state."
Minnesota is the only state where dental therapists currently practice, although they are authorized to practice in Maine, according to the organization Community Catalyst. The organization noted that these therapists practice on tribal lands in Alaska and Washington and that Oregon will be launching a statewide dental therapist demonstration program.
