On Wednesday, July 22, 2026, the House Committee on Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade held a hearing entitled, Legislative Proposals to Strengthen Consumer Protection in a Changing Marketplace. During the hearing, lawmakers deliberated 12 bills, including H.R. 7945, the Nitrous Oxide Safety Act of 2026, which was introduced by Representative Kevin Mullin (D-CA-15). In its current form, the bill would direct the Consumer Product Safety Commission to designate nitrous oxide as a banned hazardous product, prohibiting its sale for household and recreational use. Medical, industrial, and research applications of this product would be exempt from this ban.

More information on the hearing may be found here. The full text of the bill may be found here.

Impact on General Dentistry: This bill explicitly preserves the ability of dentists and other licensed healthcare professionals to obtain and administer nitrous oxide for patient care. As currently drafted, its primary impact on general dentistry would be to protect continued access to nitrous oxide sedation while restricting non-medical retail sales.