California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a law to provide more clarity to dentists on what type of dental benefit plan they are dealing with.

Twenty-six percent of dental practices have an in-office dental plan, according to a recent poll by the American Dental Association's Health Policy Institute. 

Medi-Cal and the California Department of Health Care Services launched Sealants for a Healthy Smile, a campaign to promote the use of sealants as a preventive measure against tooth decay. 

Here are six regulatory and legislative proposals, bills and acts impacting the dental insurance and benefits industry that Becker's has reported on since June 14:

The North Carolina Association of Free and Charitable Clinics is expecting an increase in patients as individuals lose Medicaid benefits after the unwinding of pandemic rules.

Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe, which has served as legal counsel to Delta Dental of California, was hit with a cyberattack.

CMS is considering adding new dental codes for ASCs and assigning codes to ambulatory payment classifications in its proposed 2024 hospital outpatient prospective payment system and ASC payment system rule.

The American Dental Association has asked CMS for additional provider payment rate transparency on two proposed Medicaid rules.

DentaQuest has launched myDentaQuest in Texas, an app that allows Medicaid and CHIP members in Texas to manage DentaQuest benefits. 

At Becker's The Future of Dentistry Roundtable in June, Paul Bernard, the CEO of InsideDesk, led a featured session focused on revenue cycle management in the dental industry. He shared his background in healthcare finance and billing, and discussed the importance of RCM as a business process that involves multiple players and complexities. 

More than three months after New Hampshire expanded dental coverage for adults on Medicaid, many patients are still unable to book a visit to the dentist, according to a July 5 report by the New Hampshire Bulletin. 

Delta Dental of Tennessee will begin offering expanded benefits to patients with special needs Jan. 1, 2024.

The American Dental Association is voicing its support for the Dental and Optometric Care Access Act.

A bill to reinstate dental benefits under Pennsylvania's medical assistance program was introduced in the state House of Representatives.

Class action law firm Schubert Jonckheer & Kolbe started an investigation into Managed Care of North America Dental after the insurer was hacked in May, which impacted nearly 9 million patients. 

The Dental Care for Our Troops Act was introduced in both the Senate and House of Representatives on June 20.

A former operator and two managers of a pediatric dental practice in Texas were charged for their roles in a $6 million Medicaid fraud and kickback scheme.

Illinois Gov. J. B. Pritzker recently signed into law two dental payer reform bills that will go into effect Jan. 1, 2024.

Albuquerque, N.M.-based Maven Dentistry added its own dental plan to help patients afford care. 

Aetna Dental was ranked as the top dental plan provider for customer satisfaction, according to the "J.D. Power 2023 U.S. Dental Plan Satisfaction Study."