8.3 Den 501 Ethical Duties, Advertising, Specialty Announcements & Practice Ownership
Key Takeaways
- Every dental advertisement in New Hampshire must name the dentist whose services are advertised and state prominently whether that dentist is a general dentist or a specialist, including ads for practices using a trade name (RSA 317-A:31).
- New Hampshire dentists announcing specialization must follow section 5-H of the ADA Principles of Ethics and Code of Professional Conduct (Den 302.04(b)).
- A dentist must document at least 8 hours of hands-on training to the Board before performing botulinum toxin or dermal filler procedures (Den 302.04(d)).
- Dentists who own, manage, or control a place where dental work is done may employ only licensed dentists and hygienists to practice dentistry and dental hygiene, and must furnish a sworn list within 10 days of a Board demand (RSA 317-A:28–29).
- Den 501.01 requires dentists and hygienists to report any sanction from another jurisdiction within 30 days and to repay their education loans.
Ethical Duties, Advertising, and Practice Ownership
Den 501.01: the ethical-duty checklist
Den 501.01(a) adds its duties to those in the ADA Principles of Ethics and Code of Professional Conduct (advisory opinions revised to March 2023) for dentists and the ADHA Code of Ethics (adopted 2024) for hygienists. Those codes apply through RSA 317-A:17, II(j). Chapter 7 covers the records duties, (d), (e), (g), (h), (k), (m), and (n). The remaining duties are:
| Paragraph | Duty |
|---|---|
| (b) | Assign to hygienists and assistants only Den 400 duties they are trained to perform correctly |
| (c) | Prescribe and supervise the care given by all hygienists and assistants under the dentist's direction |
| (f) | Report patient mortality associated with dental treatment to the Board in writing within 15 working days |
| (i) | Dentists and hygienists have an ongoing obligation to repay loans for their dental education |
| (j) | Report in writing within 30 days any sanction imposed by any jurisdiction |
| (l) | A consultant without a New Hampshire license may advise a New Hampshire dentist if the consultant has no patient contact |
| (o) | Submit only truthful and correct information to the Board or OPLC |
| (p) | Follow the ADA Infection Control and Sterilization (10/2022) and X-Rays/Radiographs (3/2024) guidance |
Advertising rules
Required content — RSA 317-A:31
All advertisements of dental services must:
- contain the name of the dentist whose services are advertised;
- state whether each dentist is a general dentist or, if qualified, a specialist in the named area; and
- state the name and designation prominently.
The rule expressly covers practices using a trade name. An ad for "Bright Smiles Dental" still must name the dentists and state their general or specialist status.
Prohibited content — RSA 317-A:17, II(h)
Ads may not deceive about services, techniques, qualifications, or prices; claim superiority or painless service; or announce unknown-formula drugs or unnamed, misnamed, or unused anesthetics or systems (section 8.1). Under ADA Code 5.F, any advertising is ethical unless it is false or misleading in a material respect.
Specialty announcements — Den 302.04(b)–(c) and ADA 5.H–5.I
- Dentists announcing specialization and limitation of practice follow section 5-H of the ADA Code (Den 302.04(b)).
- Under ADA 5.H, a dentist may announce as a specialist in a specialty recognized by the National Commission on Recognition of Dental Specialties and Certifying Boards, or in areas the jurisdiction recognizes, if the dentist meets the educational requirements. The ADA's own standard is completing a CODA-accredited advanced program of 2 or more years, or being a diplomate of an ADA-recognized certifying board. Announcing specialists use "specialist in" and may say the practice "is limited to" a specialty if the practice is exclusively devoted to it.
- Den 302.04(c): a dentist may announce diplomate status from a bona fide national organization that is not an ADA-recognized certifying board, if the status is based on postgraduate education, experience, and written and oral exams based on psychometric principles. A general dentist making that announcement must state that he or she is a general dentist.
- ADA 5.I requires general dentists who announce services to avoid implying specialization and to state that the services are provided by general dentists.
Cosmetic injectables — Den 302.04(d)
Before performing botulinum toxin or dermal filler procedures, a dentist submits documentation to the Board of at least 8 hours of hands-on training.
Who may own and run a dental practice
| Rule | Content |
|---|---|
| RSA 317-A:20, I(b) | Owning, leasing, maintaining, or operating a dental business, or managing or conducting one, is practicing dentistry and requires a license |
| RSA 317-A:20, III(c) | Exception for a health care charitable trust (RSA 7:32-d, V). It must be a nonprofit under RSA 292 and IRC 501(c)(3), comply with RSA 7:19–7:32-l, have practice supervised by a Board-licensed dentist, notify the Board in writing of the clinic and supervising dentist, and report a change of supervising dentist within 30 days |
| RSA 317-A:28 | Dentists acting as a manager, proprietor, partnership, association, or corporation that owns, manages, or controls a place where dental work is done may employ only licensed dentists to practice dentistry and licensed hygienists to practice dental hygiene |
| RSA 317-A:29 | Within 10 days after a demand by registered mail from the Board's vice-president, the owner must furnish the names and addresses of everyone practicing dentistry or dental hygiene there, with a sworn statement of each person's license or authority |
| RSA 317-A:30 | After a dentist dies, the spouse, executor, or administrator may continue the business under a registered dentist; the spouse of an incapacitated dentist may do the same |
| RSA 317-A:27 | The name of each individual practicing dentistry is displayed at the entrance |
| RSA 317-A:17, II(i) | Employing or permitting an unlicensed person to practice is misconduct |
Fee and referral ethics (ADA Code)
- 4.E: dentists may not accept or give rebates or split fees, including with marketing vendors paid a percentage of fees or through "social coupon" arrangements (4.E.1).
- 5.F.4: paying a commercial referral service per patient referred violates the Code.
- 5.G: a trade name may not be false or misleading, and a departed dentist's name may be used for no more than 1 year unless retirement is prominently disclosed (5.G.1).
Worked scenario
"Granite Smile Studio" runs online ads for "clear aligner experts" featuring Dr. Kim, a general dentist with a clear-aligner course certificate. The ad must name Dr. Kim and state prominently that she is a general dentist (RSA 317-A:31). Calling her an "expert" risks implying specialization in orthodontics, which ADA 5.I forbids for general dentists and which may mislead under RSA 317-A:17, II(h)(1).
A group practice operating under the trade name "Lakes Region Family Dental" runs a radio ad. What must the ad contain under RSA 317-A:31?
A general dentist wants to start offering botulinum toxin injections for TMD and esthetic purposes. What does Den 302.04(d) require first?
The Board's vice-president sends a registered-mail demand to a corporate dental group owned by licensed dentists, asking who practices at its clinics. What does RSA 317-A:29 require?