The Wisconsin Dentistry Examining Board has proposed a rule that would prohibit dentists from using the words “specialist” or “specialty” in any advertising unless their field appears on the American Dental Association’s list of recognized specialties.
Clearinghouse Rule 26-023 bans dentists from referencing a specialty on websites, in ads or in any media if their discipline is not among the 12 fields the ADA currently recognizes, according to a June 2 report from the Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty.
The legal advocacy group urged the Wisconsin dental board to drop or revise the rule, claiming that the proposed rule violates the First Amendment.
Dentists specializing in fields such as dental implants, who earn credentials from other well-known boards, would be impacted by the rule.
The rule would expose dentists to state discipline even for truthful statements about their training and credentials, the report said.
Here are the 12 specialities currently recognized by the ADA:
- Dental anesthesiology
- Dental public health
- Endodontics
- Oral and maxillofacial pathology
- Oral and maxillofacial radiology
- Oral and maxillofacial surgery
- Oral medicine
- Orofacial pain
- Orthodontics and dentofacial orthopedics
- Pediatric dentistry
- Periodontics
- Prosthodontics
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