Wyoming Administrative Code › Agency 034 - Dental Examiners, Board of › Sub-Agency 0001 - Dental Examiners, Board of › Chapter 6 - CODE OF ETHICS FOR DENTISTS › Section 6-5 - Veracity

Current through July 13, 2024
This principle expresses the concept that professionals have
				  a duty to be honest and trustworthy in their dealings with people. Under this
				  principle, the dentist's primary obligations include respecting the position of
				  trust inherent in the dentist-patient relationship, communicating truthfully
				  and without deception, and maintaining intellectual integrity.
(a) Representation of Care. Dentists shall
				not represent the care being rendered to their patients in a false or
				misleading manner. A dentist who represents that treatment or diagnostic
				techniques recommended or performed by the dentist has the capacity to
				diagnose, cure or alleviate diseases, infections or other conditions, when such
				representations are not based upon accepted scientific knowledge or research is
				acting unethically.
(b) Dental
				Amalgam. Based on current scientific data the Board has determined that the
				removal of amalgam restorations from the non-allergic patient for the alleged
				purpose of removing toxic substances from the body, when such treatment is
				performed solely at the recommendation or suggestion of the dentist is improper
				and unethical. The same principle of veracity applies to the dentist's
				recommendation concerning the removal of any dental restorative
				material.
(c) Representation of
				Fees. Dentists shall not represent the fees being charged for providing care in
				a false or misleading manner.
(d)
				Waiver of Copayment. A dentist who accepts a third party payment under a
				copayment plan as payment in full without disclosing to the third party that
				the patient's payment portion will not be collected, is engaged in overbilling.
				The essence of this ethical impropriety is deception and misrepresentation; an
				overbilling dentist makes it appear to the third party that the charge to the
				patient for services rendered is higher than it actually is.
(e) Overbilling. A dentist shall not increase
				a fee to a patient solely because the patient is covered under a dental
				benefits plan.
(f) Treatment Dates.
				A dentist who submits a claim form to a third party reporting incorrect
				treatment date for the purpose of assisting a patient in obtaining benefits
				under a dental plan, which benefits would otherwise be disallowed, is engaging
				in making an unethical, false or misleading representation to such third
				party.
(g) Dental Procedures. A
				dentist who incorrectly describes on a third party claim form a dental
				procedure in order to receive a greater payment or reimbursement or incorrectly
				makes a non-covered procedure appear to be a covered procedure on such a claim
				form is engaged in making an unethical, false or misleading representation to
				such third party.
(h) Unnecessary
				Services. A dentist shall not recommend and perform unnecessary dental services
				or procedures.
(i) Devices and
				Therapeutic Methods. Except for formal investigative studies, dentists shall
				prescribe, dispense, or promote only those devices, drugs and other agents
				whose complete formulae are available to the dental profession. Dentists shall
				not hold out as exclusive any device, agent, method or technique if that
				representation would be false or misleading in any material respect.
(j) Marketing or Sale of Products or
				Procedures. Dentists who, in the regular conduct of their practices, engage in
				or employ auxiliaries in the marketing or sale of products or procedures to
				their patients shall take care not to exploit the trust inherent in the
				dentist-patient relationship for their own financial gain. Dentists shall not
				induce patients to purchase products or undergo procedures by misrepresenting
				the product's value, the necessity of the procedure or the dentist's
				professional expertise in recommending the product or procedure. Dentist shall
				disclose to their patients all relevant information the patient needs to make
				an informed purchase decision.
(k)
				Professional Announcement. In order to properly serve the public, dentists
				shall represent themselves in a manner that contributes to the esteem of the
				profession. Dentists shall not misrepresent their training and competence in
				any way that would be false or misleading in any material respect.
(l) Advertising. Although any dentist may
				advertise, no dentist shall advertise or solicit patients in any form of
				communication in a manner that is false or misleading in any material
				respect.
(m) Referral Services.
				There are two basic types of referral services for dental care: not-for-profit
				and the commercial. The not-for-profit is commonly organized by dental
				societies or community services. It is open to all qualified practitioners in
				the area served. A fee is sometimes charged the practitioner to be listed with
				the service. A fee for such referral services is for the purpose of covering
				the expense of the service and has no relation to the number of patients
				referred. In contrast, some commercial referral services restrict access to the
				referral service to a limited number of dentists in a particular geographic
				area. Contractual arrangements whereby the dentist is paying the referral
				service for patients referred on a per patient basis shall be strictly
				prohibited. A dentist is allowed to pay for any advertising permitted by the
				Code, but is generally not permitted to make payments to another person or
				entity for the referral of a patient for professional services.
(n) Name of Practice. Since the name under
				which a dentist conducts his or her practice may be a factor in the selection
				process of the patient, the use of a trade name or an assumed name that is
				false or misleading in any material respect is unethical. Use of the name of a
				dentist no longer actively associated with the practice may be continued for a
				period not to exceed one (1) year.
(o) Dentist Leaving Practice. Dentists
				leaving a practice who authorize continued use of their names should seek
				advice on the legal implications of this action. With permission of a departing
				dentist, his or her name may be used for more than one year, if, after the one
				year grace period has expired, prominent notice is provided to the public
				through such mediums as a sign at the office and a short statement on
				stationery and business cards that the departing dentists has retired from the
				practice.
(p) Announcement of
				Specialization. A dentist shall not advertise or otherwise hold himself or
				herself out to the public as a specialist, or use any variation of the term, in
				an area of practice if the communication is false or misleading.
(i) It shall be false or misleading for a
				dentist to hold himself or herself out to the public as a specialist, or any
				variation of that term, in a practice area unless the dentist:
(A) has completed a qualifying postdoctoral
				educational program in that area as set forth in subsection (ii) of this rule;
				or
(B) holds a current
				certification by a qualifying specialty board or organization as set forth in
				subsection (iii) of this rule.