2023 Laws of Puerto Rico › TITLE TWENTY - Examining Boards and Professional Colleges (§§ 1 — 6033) › Chapter 5 - Board of Dental Examiners and College of Dental Surgeons (§§ 81 — 123) › Subchapter I - Board of Dental Examiners (§§ 81 — 95) › § 87 - Cancellation or suspension of license

The Board may suspend or cancel any license issued to practice dental surgery in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or may impose on the holder thereof any of the disciplinary sanctions provided in § 87c-1 of this title through the presentation of satisfactory evidence that the holder of said license has been guilty of any of the following violations:
(a) That he has obtained said license by deceit, fraud or false representation or imposture; or has procured or attempted to procure a certificate from the Board of Dental Examiners or a license to practice dentistry, by fraud or false representation.
(b) That he has been convicted of a crime implying moral turpitude.
(c) That he is addicted to the use of controlled substances, dangerous narcotic drugs, hypnotics, including derivates of acetylurea, barbituric acid, chloral-hydrate, paradelhyde, phenylhydantoin, sulfomethane, or any compound, mixture or preparation that can produce hypnotic effects, or alcohol to the point of affecting the dentist’s capacity to practice his profession.
(d) Prescribes, prepares or advises the use of controlled substances or drugs for other purposes than for accepted therapeutic purposes.
(e) That he has been convicted of manifest negligence in the practice of dental surgery or has been guilty of unprofessional conduct.
To the effects of this subsection, unprofessional conduct means and includes acts such as the following:
(1) To reveal intentionally a professional confidence or a confidential communication except as it may be required by law. This provision shall not be construed as inhibiting the members of the Board from exchanging information, subject to the limitation of applicable laws, with the Boards of Dental Examiners of other states, territories or districts of the United States or foreign countries, or any of its component associations or the dental associations of other states, counties, districts, territories or foreign countries.
(2) Acting as a member of the Board when he really is not.
(3) To maintain professional relations or ceding, authorizing or loaning the use of his license or the name and title of dentist to a person who illegally practices a health profession, having prior knowledge that that person is not legally authorized to practice odontology.
(4) To state that a condition, illness, lesion, ailment or weakness which is manifestly not correctible may be permanently corrected, or that it can be corrected within a stipulated period, if this is untrue.
(5) To offer the correction, cure or treatment of a condition, illness, lesion or ailment or weakness by secret methods, means, artifacts or instruments.
(6) To refuse to reveal to the Board, upon presentation of reasonable notice and summons, the means, methods, artifacts or instruments used in the treatment of a condition, illness, lesion, ailment or weakness.
(7) To request or receive directly or indirectly, fees, compensation, reimbursements or commissions for medical services that were not rendered.
(8) To make or to instigate another person to make any written or oral fraudulent statement related to the practice of odontology.
(9) To obtain fees through fraud or misrepresentation, or present a fraudulent claim voluntarily or intentionally with a third party for services rendered or to be rendered to a patient.
(f) Employs unauthorized persons, or helps and instigates unauthorized persons to perform work which, in accordance with this subchapter, may only be legally performed by persons authorized to practice dental surgery in Puerto Rico.
(g) Causes by commission or omission, that personnel under his direction and supervision perform illegal acts or practice acts and practices which are not permitted under the provisions of this subchapter or the regulations adopted by virtue thereof.
(h) Advertises or voluntarily publishes statements which are false, fraudulent and misleading regarding his skill, ability or knowledge, or his methods and system of treatment and professional practice. Any person shall be guilty of a violation of this section if, on his own or through his agent, representative, mandatory or any other person, he publishes or causes to be published:
(1) False, fraudulent or misleading statements regarding his own skills, methods or practices, or those of any other person, with regard to odontology.
(2) Advertises that the practice of any specific dental operation is painless.
(3) Claims or alleges in public information material that the dentist who offers dental services by such means is better than other professionals.
(4) Publishes reports of cases or testimonials of patients in any public information media.
(5) Uses the public exhibition [sic] or use of samples of dental work.
In advertising his services, the dental surgeon shall avoid any type of presentation that could create unreasonable expectations regarding the success of any treatment.
Any advertisement that is not justified as a reasonable and professionally acceptable medium to reveal the availability of dental services, and of those that contain figures, drawings, pictures or any other type of graphic depiction; those that contain self-praising expressions or references to the quality of the services offered, the equipment, facilities, treatment used or available, and those in which the dental surgeon claims or alleges he is a specialist or expert in specific areas of dentistry without being duly certified as such by the Board; those that make offerings of dental services in an ambiguous way and in such a manner that it could create false expectations in the potential patient, or which fail to state any pertinent fact which is needed for a prudent and reasonable person to understand the services that are being offered, and the advertising of fees for dental services in an unprecise manner or regarding services whose total cost cannot be foreseen, are hereby forbidden.
The Board shall establish, by regulation, the standards and criteria needed to regulate the advertisements of dental surgeons pursuant to the provisions of this subchapter.
Professional publications, public interviews, conferences, forums or community education activities and cases of new discoveries, methods or treatments, when it is a publication of great interest and authorized by the Board for community orientation, are hereby exempted from the provisions of clauses (4) and (5) of this subsection.
(i) Practices dental surgery under signs that only contain the words “Dentist” “Dental Surgeon”, “Odontologist”, and omits the name and title of the person licensed to practice dental surgery; or under a pseudonym or false name which is not his own or the name authorized by the Commonwealth. In the case of partnerships, associations, entities or groups of odontologists who practice under the same name, the sign must indicate the proper name and title of each of the dentists that are engaged in the practice of odontology under such common name.
(j) Violates any of the provisions of this subchapter, or of the regulations adopted by virtue hereof.
(k) Violates §§ 111—123 of this title, which create the College of Dental Surgeons of Puerto Rico.
(l) Persists in violating the regulations of the College of Dental Surgeons of Puerto Rico after having been fully warned of the violation, or after having been administratively punished by said College.
History —Aug. 8, 1925, No. 75, p. 550, § 7; June 18, 1965, No. 39, p. 75, § 1; June 23, 1971, No. 74, p. 216, § 2; Oct. 9, 1986, No. 11, p. 817, § 7.