{"data":{"id":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-59-59-328.32","jurisdiction":"us-ok","citation":"Okla. Stat. tit. 59, § 59-328.32","heading":"Dentists - Grounds for penalties","body":"\n\nA. The following acts or occurrences by a dentist shall\n\nconstitute grounds for which the penalties specified in Section\n\n328.44a of this title may be imposed by order of the Board of\n\nDentistry or be the basis for denying a new applicant any license or\n\npermit issued by the Board:\n\n1. Pleading guilty or nolo contendere to, or being convicted\n\nof, a felony, a misdemeanor involving moral turpitude, any crime in\n\nwhich an individual would be required to be a registered sex\n\noffender under state law, any violent crime, Medicaid fraud,\n\ninsurance fraud, identity theft, embezzlement or a violation of\n\nfederal or state controlled dangerous substances laws;\n\n2. Presenting to the Board a false diploma, license, or\n\ncertificate, or one obtained by fraud or illegal means, or providing\n\nother false information on an application or renewal;\n\n3. Being, by reason of persistent inebriety or addiction to\n\ndrugs, incompetent to continue the practice of dentistry or failing\n\nto notify the Board of a licensee, permit holder, or other health\n\nprofessional that is practicing while impaired or is in a state of\n\nphysical or mental health that the licensee or permit holder\n\nsuspects constitutes a threat to patient care within seventy-two\n\n(72) hours of witness or belief of such conditions;\n\n4. Publishing a false, fraudulent, or misleading advertisement\n\nor statement;\n\n5. Authorizing or aiding an unlicensed person to practice\n\ndentistry, to practice dental hygiene or to perform a function for\n\nwhich a permit from the Board is required;\n\n6. Authorizing or aiding a dental hygienist to perform any\n\nprocedure prohibited by the State Dental Act or the rules of the\n\nBoard;\n\n7. Authorizing or aiding a dental assistant to perform any\n\nprocedure prohibited by the State Dental Act or the rules of the\n\nBoard;\n\n8. Failing to pay fees as required by the State Dental Act or\n\nthe rules of the Board;\n\n9. Failing to complete continuing education requirements;\n\n10. Representing himself or herself to the public as a\n\nspecialist in a dental specialty without holding a dental specialty\n\nlicense as listed in Section 328.22 of this title;\n\n11. Practicing below the basic standard of care of a patient\n\nwhich an ordinary prudent dentist with similar training and\n\nexperience within the local area would have provided including, but\n\nnot limited to, failing to complete proper training and demonstrate\n\nproficiency for any procedure delegated to a dental hygienist or\n\ndental assistant;\n\n12. Endangering the health of patients by reason of having a\n\nhighly communicable disease and continuing to practice dentistry\n\nwithout taking appropriate safeguards;\n\n13. Practicing dentistry in an unsafe or unsanitary manner or\n\nplace including but not limited to repeated failures to follow\n\nCenters for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) or Occupational\n\nSafety and Health Administration (OSHA) guidelines;\n\n14. Being shown to be mentally unsound;\n\n15. Being shown to be grossly immoral and that such condition\n\nrepresents a threat to patient care or treatment;\n\n16. Being incompetent to practice dentistry while delivering\n\ncare to a patient;\n\n17. Committing gross negligence in the practice of dentistry;\n\n18. Committing repeated acts of negligence in the practice of\n\ndentistry;\n\n19. Offering to effect or effecting a division of fees, or\n\nagreeing to split or divide a fee for dental services with any\n\nperson, in exchange for the person bringing or referring a patient;\n\n20. Being involuntarily committed to an institution for\n\ntreatment for substance abuse, until recovery or remission;\n\n21. Using or attempting to use the services of a dental\n\nlaboratory or dental laboratory technician without issuing a\n\nlaboratory prescription, except as provided in subsection C of\n\nSection 328.36 of this title;\n\n22. Aiding, abetting, or encouraging a dental hygienist\na patient;\n\n20. Being involuntarily committed to an institution for\n\ntreatment for substance abuse, until recovery or remission;\n\n21. Using or attempting to use the services of a dental\n\nlaboratory or dental laboratory technician without issuing a\n\nlaboratory prescription, except as provided in subsection C of\n\nSection 328.36 of this title;\n\n22. Aiding, abetting, or encouraging a dental hygienist\n\nemployed by the dentist to make use of an oral prophylaxis list, or\n\nthe calling by telephone or by use of letters transmitted through\n\nthe mail to solicit patronage from patients formerly served in the\n\noffice of any dentist formerly employing such dental hygienist;\n\n23. Having more than the equivalent of three full-time dental\n\nhygienists for each dentist actively practicing in the same dental\n\noffice;\n\n24. Allowing a person not holding a permit or license issued by\n\nthe Board to assist in the treatment of a patient without having a\n\nlicense or permit issued by the Board;\n\n25. Knowingly patronizing or using the services of a dental\n\nlaboratory or dental laboratory technician who has not complied with\n\nthe provisions of the State Dental Act and the rules of the Board;\n\n26. Authorizing or aiding a dental hygienist, dental assistant,\n\ndental laboratory technician, or holder of a permit to operate a\n\ndental laboratory to violate any provision of the State Dental Act\n\nor the rules of the Board;\n\n27. Willfully disclosing information protected by the Health\n\nInsurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, P.L. 104-191;\n\n28. Writing a false, unnecessary, or excessive prescription for\n\nany drug or narcotic which is a controlled dangerous substance under\n\neither federal or state law, or prescribing, dispensing or\n\nadministering opioid drugs in excess of the maximum limits\n\nauthorized in Section 2-309I of Title 63 of the Oklahoma Statutes;\n\n29. Prescribing or administering any drug or treatment without\n\nhaving established a valid dentist-patient relationship;\n\n30. Using or administering nitrous oxide gas in a dental office\n\nin an inappropriate or unauthorized manner;\n\n31. Engaging in nonconsensual physical contact with a patient\n\nwhich is sexual in nature, or engaging in a verbal communication\n\nwhich is intended to be sexually demeaning to a patient;\n\n32. Practicing dentistry without displaying, at the dentist’s\n\nprimary place of practice, the license issued to the dentist by the\n\nBoard to practice dentistry and the current renewal certificate;\n\n33. Being dishonest in a material way with a patient or during\n\nthe practice of dentistry;\n\n34. Failing to retain all patient records for at least seven\n\n(7) years from the date of the last treatment as provided by Section\n\n328.31b of this title, except that the failure to retain records\n\nshall not be a violation of the State Dental Act if the dentist\n\nshows that the records were lost, destroyed, or removed by another,\n\nwithout the consent of the dentist;\n\n35. Failing to retain the dentist’s copy of any laboratory\n\nprescription for at least seven (7) years, except that the failure\n\nto retain records shall not be a violation of the State Dental Act\n\nif the dentist shows that the records were lost, destroyed, or\n\nremoved by another, without the consent of the dentist;\n\n36. Allowing any corporation, organization, group, person, or\n\nother legal entity, except another dentist or a professional entity\n\nthat is in compliance with the registration requirements of\n\nsubsection B of Section 328.31 of this title, to direct, control, or\n\ninterfere with the dentist’s clinical judgment. Clinical judgment\n\nshall include, but not be limited to, such matters as selection of a\n\ncourse of treatment, control of patient records, policies and\n\ndecisions relating to pricing, credit, refunds, warranties and\n\nadvertising, and decisions relating to office personnel and hours of\n\npractice. Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed to:\nol, or\n\ninterfere with the dentist’s clinical judgment. Clinical judgment\n\nshall include, but not be limited to, such matters as selection of a\n\ncourse of treatment, control of patient records, policies and\n\ndecisions relating to pricing, credit, refunds, warranties and\n\nadvertising, and decisions relating to office personnel and hours of\n\npractice. Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed to:\n\na. limit a patient’s right of informed consent, or\n\nb. prohibit insurers, preferred provider organizations\n\nand managed care plans from operating pursuant to the\n\napplicable provisions of the Oklahoma Insurance Code\n\nand the Oklahoma Public Health Code;\n\n37. Violating the state dental act of another state resulting\n\nin a plea of guilty or nolo contendere, conviction or suspension or\n\nrevocation or other sanction by another state board, of the license\n\nof the dentist under the laws of that state;\n\n38. Violating or attempting to violate the provisions of the\n\nState Dental Act or the rules of the Board, a state or federal\n\nstatute or rule relating to scheduled drugs, fraud, a violent crime\n\nor any crime for which the penalty includes the requirement of\n\nregistration as a sex offender in this state as a principal,\n\naccessory or accomplice;\n\n39. Failing to comply with the terms and conditions of an order\n\nimposing suspension of a license or placement on probation issued\n\npursuant to Section 328.44a of this title;\n\n40. Failing to cooperate during an investigation or providing\n\nfalse information, verbally or in writing, to the Board, the Board’s\n\ninvestigator or an agent of the Board;\n\n41. Having multiple administrative or civil actions reported to\n\nthe National Practitioner Data Bank;\n\n42. Failing to complete an approved two-hour course on opioid\n\nand scheduled drug prescribing within one (1) year of obtaining a\n\nlicense or a violation of a law related to controlled dangerous\n\nsubstances including prescribing laws pursuant to Section 2-309D of\n\nTitle 63 of the Oklahoma Statutes;\n\n43. Falling below the basic standard of care of a licensed\n\ndentist or dentist practicing in his or her specialty, a dental\n\nhygienist, dental assistant, or other licensee or permit holder\n\npursuant to the State Dental Act and Section 20.1 of Title 76 of the\n\nOklahoma Statutes; or\n\n44. Failing to provide patient records as provided by Sections\n\n19 and 20 of Title 76 of the Oklahoma Statutes.\n\nB. Any person making a report in good faith to the Board or to\n\na peer assistance group regarding a professional suspected of\n\npracticing dentistry while being impaired pursuant to paragraph 3 of\n\nsubsection A of this section shall be immune from any civil or\n\ncriminal liability arising from such reports.\n\nC. The provisions of the State Dental Act shall not be\n\nconstrued to prohibit any dentist from displaying or otherwise\n\nadvertising that the dentist is also currently licensed, registered,\n\ncertified or otherwise credentialed pursuant to the laws of this\n\nstate or a nationally recognized credentialing board, if authorized\n\nby the laws of the state or credentialing board to display or\n\notherwise advertise as a licensed, registered, certified, or\n\ncredentialed dentist.","path":["OK Code","Title 59"],"source_url":"https://www.oklegislature.gov/OK_Statutes/CompleteTitles/os59.pdf","current_through":"2026-08-14","vintage":"open-us-law v2026.08, retrieved 2026-09-14","retrieved_at":"2026-09-14T18:32:36Z","sha256":"0d3edc38f1c67034d5cfbb35ca60d608315a33c3cd6b8af4356ef051b574a869","source_id":"us-ok","stale":false,"prev":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-59-59-328.31b","next":"us-ok/okla.-stat.-tit.-59-59-328.33"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}