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Regulations - Chapter 2, Article 7

TITLE 16. PROFESSIONAL AND VOCATIONAL REGULATIONS
DIVISION 10. DENTAL BOARD OF CALIFORNIA
CHAPTER 2. DENTISTS
ARTICLE 7. ADVERTISING

Section 1050. Fee Advertising.
Section 1051. Advertising Discounts.
Section 1052. Advertising Claims.
Section 1053. Advertising Dentures.
Section 1054. Recognized Dental Specialty Boards and Associations.
Section 1054.1. Advertising Credentials.
Section 1054.2. Advertising as a Specialist.
Section 1054.3. Definition of Advertising.

Section 1050. Fee Advertising.
Pursuant to Section 651(c) of the Code, fee advertising must be accurate and precise. Fees for dental services may be advertised provided the advertisement fully discloses all services customarily included by the dental profession as part of the advertised service, including but not limited to necessary diagnosis, radiographs, restorative treatment, drugs, local anesthesia or analgesia, materials, laboratory fees and post-operative care. The advertisement must also disclose any additional services not part of the procedure but for which the patient will be charged, together with the fees for such services.
Note: Authority cited: Sections 651 and 1614, Business and Professions Code. Reference: Sections 651 and 1680, Business and Professions Code.

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Section 1051. Advertising Discounts.
An advertisement of a discount must: (a) List the dollar amount of the non-discounted fee for the service; and
(b) List either the dollar amount of the discount fee or the percentage of the discount for the specific service; and
(c) Inform the public of the length of time, if any, the discount will be honored; and
(d) List verifiable fees pursuant to Section 651 of the Code; and
(e) Identify specific groups who qualify for the discount or any other terms and conditions or restrictions for qualifying for the discount.
Note: Authority cited: Sections 651 and 1614, Business and Professions Code. Reference: Section 651, Business and Professions Code.

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Section 1052. Advertising Claims.
(a) Any advertisement must be capable of substantiation, particularly that the services offered are actually delivered and at the fees advertised.
(b) Illustrations, graphics or visuals used in any type of advertising may include only those permitted by Section 651 of the Code. These may include, for example:
  1. (1) Representations of the dentist, the dentist's staff or facility.
  2. (2) Representations of other people, provided that these are not used to make claims of professional superiority (including testimonials), illustrate any dental condition, or the recovery there from.
  3. (3) Representations of single teeth, dentures, or other dental appliances, provided that these are not used to illustrate any dental condition, recovery there from, or to make claims of professional superiority.
Note: Authority cited: Sections 651 and 1614, Business and Professions Code. Reference: Section 651, Business and Professions Code.

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Section 1053. Advertising Dentures.
Advertising of dentures shall include the following information:
(a) Whether these are preformed or custom-made.
(b) In the case of "immediate dentures," details of (including charges for) later relines or other necessary procedures.
(c) Advertising may include fees for various grades of dentures, providing that potentially misleading descriptive phrases are not used and the advertising discloses the major variables.
Note: Authority cited: Sections 651 and 1614, Business and Professions Code. Reference: Section 651, Business and Professions Code.

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Section 1054. Recognized Dental Specialty Boards and Associations.
For purposes of this article and Section 651 of the Code, the board recognizes those dental specialty boards which are affiliated with specialties recognized by the American Dental Association, including: American Board of Dental Public Health; American Board of Endodontics; American Board of Oral Pathology; American Board of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery; American Board of Orthodontics; American Board of Pediatric Dentistry; American Board of Periodontology; and American Board of Prosthodontics. The board also recognizes those boards that require two or more years of training in a formal advanced education program affiliated with a school of dentistry or medicine that follows educational guidelines developed by the Council on Dental Education of the American Dental Association, dated January 1975, which are hereby incorporated by reference.

Note: Authority cited: Sections 651 and 1614, Business and Professions Code. Reference: Section 651, Business and Professions Code.

HISTORY
  1. New section filed 4-24-2000; operative 5-24-2000 (Register 2000, No. 17).

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Section 1054.1. Advertising Credentials.
(a) A dentist may advertise that he or she has credentials from one of the dental specialty boards recognized by the Board of Dental Examiners of the State of California, pursuant to Section 1054.
(b) A dentist may not advertise credentials granted by a private or public board or parent association which is not recognized pursuant to Section 1054, unless:
  1. (1) The private or public board or parent association which grants the credentials currently requires:
  2. (A) Successful completion of an oral and written examination based on psychometric principles; and
  3. (B) Training and experience subsequent to successful completion of (A) above, to assure competent practice in the dental discipline as determined by the private or public board or parent association which grants the credentials.
  4. (2) Any advertisement which references the dentist's credentials shall include the following statement: "[Name of announced dental discipline] is a discipline not recognized as a dental specialty by the Board of Dental Examiners of the State of California".
  5. (3) The dentist discloses that he or she is a general dentist in any advertising which references the dentist's credentials.
(c) Subdivision (b)(1)(B) shall not be construed to prohibit a dentist from advertising credentials on the basis that the credentials were granted without examination if the credentials were granted prior to 1985.

Note: Authority cited: Sections 651 and 1614, Business and Professions Code. Reference: Section 651, Business and Professions Code.

HISTORY
  1. New section filed 4-24-2000; operative 5-24-2000 (Register 2000, No. 17).
  2. Change without regulatory effect repealing subsection (b)(1)(A), relettering subsections and amending newly designated subsection (b)(1)(B) and subsections (b)(2)-(3) filed 11-15-2000 pursuant to section 100, title 1, California Code of Regulations (Register 2000, No. 46).

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Section 1054.2. Advertising as a Specialist.
A dentist may not advertise that he or she is a "specialist" unless he or she is certified or eligible for certification by a dental specialty board recognized pursuant to Section 1054.

Note: Authority cited: Sections 651 and 1614, Business and Professions Code. Reference: Section 651, Business and Professions Code.

HISTORY
  1. New section filed 4-24-2000; operative 5-24-2000 (Register 2000, No. 17).

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Section 1054.3. Definition of Advertising.
(a) For purposes of this article, "advertising" or "advertisement" means:
  1. (1) Any written or printed communication for the purpose of soliciting, describing, or promoting a dentist's licensed activities, including a brochure, letter, pamphlet, newspaper, telephone listing, periodical, business card or other writing.
  2. (2) Any directory listing caused or permitted by a dentist which indicates his or her licensed activity.
  3. (3) Any radio, television, computer network or similar airwave or electronic transmission which solicits or promotes the dentist's practice.
  4. (4) Any printing or writing on novelty objects or dental care products.
(b) "Advertising" or "advertisement" does not include any of the following:
  1. (1) Any printing or writing used on buildings, uniforms or badges, where the purpose of the writing is for identification.
  2. (2) Any printing or writing on memoranda or other communications used in the ordinary course of business where the sole purpose of the writing is other than the solicitation or promotion of the dentist's practice.

Note: Authority cited: Sections 651 and 1614, Business and Professions Code. Reference: Section 651, Business and Professions Code.

HISTORY
  1. New section filed 4-24-2000; operative 5-24-2000 (Register 2000, No. 17).