Pennsylvania Board of Dentistry

The Pennsylvania State Board of Dentistry operates within the Department of State's Bureau of Professional and Occupational Affairs (BPOA), one of 29 professional and occupational licensing boards and commissions the Bureau oversees. The Board regulates dentists, dental hygienists, expanded function dental assistants (EFDAs), restricted faculty licensees, and public health dental hygiene practitioners (PHDHPs), and investigates the unlicensed practice of those professions.

The Board's authority derives from Act 76 of 1933, known as The Dental Law (63 P.S. §§ 120–130i). Under 63 P.S. § 121.1, the Board consists of 15 members: the Secretary of Health (or designee), the Director of the Bureau of Consumer Protection in the Office of Attorney General (or designee), and the Commissioner of Professional and Occupational Affairs (or designee) serve as ex officio members, joined by 12 members appointed by the Governor with Senate confirmation — two public members, eight dentists who have practiced at least ten years, one dental hygienist, and one expanded function dental assistant. Appointed members serve six-year terms and may serve no more than two consecutive terms.

As of the Board's most recently published roster, the professional and public seats are held by Chairperson Jennifer Sullivan, D.M.D., J.D.; Vice Chairperson Shawn Casey, D.M.D.; dentist members Brice Arndt, D.D.S., Godfrey Funari, D.M.D., Joel Jaspan, D.D.S., LaJuan Mountain, D.M.D., and Joyce Warwick, D.M.D. (one dentist seat is currently vacant); hygienist member Donna Murray, R.D.H.; EFDA member Ana Chavez; and public member Barbara Fowler (one public seat is currently vacant).

Under this authority, the Board licenses, registers, certifies, and disciplines dental professionals practicing in the Commonwealth, and determines on a case-by-case basis whether a professional under its jurisdiction departed from an ethical or quality standard of the profession. Board meetings are open to the public and are held at the Board's office at 2525 N 7th Street, Harrisburg, with a call-in option; meeting notices, agendas, and minutes are posted on the Board's page at pa.gov.

The Pennsylvania State Board of Dentistry issues the following credentials, each renewed on a biennial cycle expiring March 31 of odd-numbered years:

• Dentist (DS) — general license for the full scope of dental diagnosis and treatment.
• Dental Hygienist (DH) — preventive and clinical hygiene services performed under dentist supervision.
• Expanded Function Dental Assistant (EFDA) — certification to perform an expanded range of restorative and clinical procedures delegated by a supervising dentist; the certification exam is administered through Pearson VUE.
• Restricted Faculty License — permits practice for the limited purpose of teaching at an accredited dental school or an affiliated academic clinical facility.
• Public Health Dental Hygiene Practitioner (PHDHP) — hygienists certified to practice in public health and community settings after 3,600 hours of supervised hygiene practice.
• Dental Hygiene Local Anesthesia permit (DHA) — hygienist certification to administer local anesthesia.
• Anesthesia Permits — Unrestricted, Restricted I, and Restricted II permits authorizing dentists to administer general anesthesia, deep sedation, conscious sedation, or nitrous oxide/oxygen analgesia at increasing levels of complexity.
• Volunteer Dentist license — a no-fee license type for dentists providing uncompensated care.

Dentists must pass the National Board Dental Examination and a clinical examination administered by one of the Board-recognized testing agencies — ADEX, CDCA, CRDTS, CITA, SRTA, or WREB. Dental hygienists follow the same two-exam structure through the National Board Dental Hygiene Examination and a matching clinical exam. Pennsylvania does not require a separate jurisprudence examination for initial licensure.

All Pennsylvania dental applications, renewals, and license verifications are processed through PALS — the Pennsylvania Licensing System — at pals.pa.gov. First-time applicants create a PALS account; PALS also provides an application checklist tool listing the documents required for each license type.

Required documentation

• Education credentials — for dentists, graduation from a school accredited by the ADA's Commission on Dental Accreditation (CODA) or the Commission on Dental Accreditation of Canada (CDAC); for hygienists, an accredited associate's-degree hygiene program; for EFDAs, a Board-approved program of at least 200 hours of clinical/didactic instruction (or equivalent hygiene-school restorative coursework).
• Examination scores — National Board and clinical examination results reported directly by the testing agency.
• Background check authorization — IdentoGO pre-registration and service code, as described above.
• Licensure history — verification of any out-of-state licenses held, where applicable.

Out-of-state and reciprocal licensure

Pennsylvania offers two pathways for out-of-state dentists, hygienists, and EFDAs: licensure and certification by criteria approval (49 Pa. Code § 33.107), available when the applicant's home-state board confirms it reciprocates with Pennsylvania and supplies a letter of good standing; and the newer licensure by endorsement pathway (49 Pa. Code § 33.107a) described above, available under Act 41 of 2019 to applicants from substantially equivalent jurisdictions who have practiced at least 2 of the last 5 years without discipline.

Applications and supporting documents not submitted electronically may be mailed to:

State Board of Dentistry
P.O. Box 2649
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania 17105-2649

Pennsylvania's Board regulations (49 Pa. Code §§ 33.401–33.404) set the continuing education requirements for each credential type, due at every biennial renewal (the two-year period running April 1 of an odd year through March 31 two years later).

CE hours by license type (per 2-year renewal period)

Subject-matter requirements

• At least 50% of required hours must be completed in lecture or clinical-presentation format; no more than 50% may be completed through individual/online study, or by serving as an instructor or published author
• 2 hours of Act 31 mandated child-abuse-recognition-and-reporting training from an approved provider are required for every license type at every renewal (initial applicants must also complete 3 hours of this training within one year of first licensure)
• 2 hours of Act 124 (ABC-MAP) opioid-related continuing education — pain management, identification of addiction, or safe prescribing/dispensing practices — are required for dentists, restricted faculty, and volunteer dentists only if they hold a DEA registration or use another person's or entity's DEA registration to prescribe controlled substances
• Dental hygienists may apply no more than 3 of their 20 hours to communication-skills courses
• Hygienists who hold a local anesthesia permit must complete 3 of their 20 hours specifically on local anesthesia administration and pharmacology
• EFDAs must complete 3 of their 10 hours in hands-on coronal-polishing instruction (EFDAs who completed equivalent coursework during initial training are exempt); this requirement cannot be met through video, online, or distance education

Licensees are exempt from the CE requirement only for the single biennial period during which they passed their initial licensure or certification examination. A hardship waiver may be requested in writing for illness or emergency and is evaluated case-by-case. Documentation of completed hours must be retained for 4 years, and CE credit is awarded only for programs from Board-approved providers, including accredited dental schools, the ADA's Continuing Education Recognition Program and specialty societies, the Academy of General Dentistry, the American Dental Hygienists Association, and the American Dental Assistants Association.

The scope of dental practice in Pennsylvania is defined by Act 76 of 1933 (The Dental Law) and the Board's regulations at 49 Pa. Code Chapter 33. "Practice of dentistry" is defined broadly to include diagnosing, treating, operating on, or prescribing for any disease, pain, or injury of the human teeth, jaws, or associated structures. The definition excludes several narrow categories, including dental students practicing under supervision within an accredited dental school's clinical program, licensed physicians relieving pain in an emergency, and out-of-state dentists consulting on a Pennsylvania case or demonstrating before a Pennsylvania dental society.

• Dentists — full diagnostic and clinical scope under Act 76.
• Dental Hygienists — preventive and clinical hygiene services performed under a dentist's direct supervision (the dentist examines the patient, authorizes and is physically present for the procedure, and takes responsibility for the completed work) or, in defined settings, general supervision (the dentist examines the patient and authorizes hygiene services to be performed within the following year without being physically present).
• Expanded Function Dental Assistants — perform delegated restorative functions such as coronal polishing, placing and condensing amalgam and other restorative materials, fluoride treatments (including fluoride varnish), and placing/removing rubber dams, under a supervising dentist.
• Public Health Dental Hygiene Practitioners — hygienists certified after 3,600 hours of supervised hygiene practice to deliver preventive and hygiene services in public health and community settings under modified supervision.
• Restricted Faculty Licensees — practice limited to teaching, including clinical teaching, at an accredited dental school or an affiliated non-profit clinical facility.

Complaints about Pennsylvania dental licensees are received by the Department of State's Bureau of Professional and Occupational Affairs (BPOA) and, where a violation of Board law or regulation is alleged, adjudicated by the State Board of Dentistry.

How to file

• Online — submit a Statement of Complaint Form through pals.pa.gov.
• By mail — download and complete the complaint form (PDF), or call the complaint hotline at 1-800-822-2113 (in Pennsylvania) or 717-783-4849 to have a form mailed to you.

All mandatory fields must be completed for a complaint to be accepted. The Department accepts complaints from any source — including reports of unlicensed practice — and reviews all information submitted.

What happens after you file

BPOA's Professional Compliance Office, within the Prosecution Division of the Legal Office, reviews each complaint to determine whether it alleges a violation within the Board's jurisdiction. Cases warranting investigation are typically assigned to the Bureau of Enforcement and Investigation (BEI), whose investigators interview witnesses and gather documentary evidence before referring findings to the Prosecution Division. Many cases resolve through a negotiated Consent Agreement and Order, which must be approved by the Board; contested cases may proceed to a hearing before a BPOA hearing examiner. Resulting discipline becomes part of the licensee's public disciplinary record.

Contact

Phone: 1-800-822-2113 (in PA) or 717-783-4849
Email: RA-ST-Complaints@pa.gov

License status and disciplinary history for Pennsylvania dental professionals are searchable through PALS — the Pennsylvania Licensing System — at pals.pa.gov. PALS's public "Verify a License" area offers four distinct search tools:

• Person Search — look up an individual licensee by name or license number to view license status and type.
• Facility Search — look up registered dental facilities and fictitious-name registrations.
• Disciplinary Search — search public disciplinary actions taken against licensees.
• Provider Search — look up Board-approved continuing-education providers.

Disciplinary actions — whether from a contested hearing or a negotiated Consent Agreement and Order — become part of a licensee's permanent public disciplinary record. The Board may impose license suspension, revocation, probation, civil penalties, and mandatory remedial education.

Licensees may also use PALS to order a certified verification letter of their Pennsylvania licensure status for employers, insurers, or other state boards.