In Arizona, a dental therapist bill, SB 1377, was read and referred to the House Health Committee after being passed by the senate. If you live in Arizona, please take action by visiting the AGD Advocacy webpage, and sending a letter to your legislator.

In Connecticut, SB 207 was introduced on February 22, 2018. The bill seeks to prohibit certain health carriers from requiring that a licensed dentist accept reimbursement for covered dental services by way of an electronic funds transfer or a virtual credit card.

In Florida, HB 21 was approved by the Health and Human Services Committee. The bill seeks to impose a limit on the majority of initial opioid prescriptions to three days, and seven days for patients with acute pain. The bill also requires prescribers to consult the state’s prescription drug monitoring database (PDMP) before writing a prescription.

A similar bill was passed in Arizona, which set the initial prescription limit to five days. Nebraska, Tennessee, and West Virginia are also considering prescription limit and PDMP bills. Since 2016, 24 states have enacted laws limiting initial opioid prescriptions to anywhere from three to 14 days.

If you would like more information on legislative matters in your state, or are interested in carrying out advocacy on AGD issues, please contact us at advocacy@agd.org or visit the AGD’s Advocacy webpage.