Seventeen states enacted or implemented changes to dental assistant requirements between April and July 2026, according to Dental Assisting National Board’s Fall 2026 State of the States report.
Nine states expanded dental assistant functions, three modified requirements, three changed supervision levels and two added reporting requirements.
Six highlights from the report:
- Several states expanded the clinical tasks dental assistants may perform. Alabama and North Dakota added coronal polishing, while Alabama also added pit and fissure sealant placement. Florida expanded delegable tasks to include polishing clinical crowns with a rotary instrument and removing and placing certain implant components. Virginia now allows dental assistants with 1,800 clinical hours to perform supragingival scaling and coronal polishing under dentist supervision.
- Washington state authorized dental assistants to apply silver diamine fluoride to children in school-based and school-linked programs under general dentist supervision. South Carolina similarly expanded dental assistant scope in school settings, allowing oral screenings using a state-approved system.
- Kentucky signed two bills with dental workforce implications. HB776 expands the tools dental assistants may use for coronal polishing. HB459 requires licensing authorities for healthcare occupations — including dental assisting — to collect workforce participation data during license renewals, with the new process required by Jan. 1, 2028.
- Iowa now allows dental assistants to practice without registration if they complete a specified period of practical training — including jurisprudence and infection control — under a licensed dentist’s supervision.
- Michigan updated its dental therapy delegation rules, allowing dental therapists to delegate functions to registered dental assistants and unlicensed auxiliaries. The updates also require unlicensed auxiliaries to complete additional infection control training and to identify themselves as unlicensed to telehealth patients.
- Maine updated its mandatory reporting law to explicitly include dentists, dental hygienists and dental assistants as health care practitioners required to report suspected child abuse or neglect.
- Maryland enacted a law requiring criminal history record checks for individuals seeking or renewing dental assisting certificates, effective Jan. 1.
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