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Amend the bill in section 1 in §1094-K by striking out all of subsections 1 and 2 (page 1, lines 7 to 16 in L.D.) and inserting the following:
 
‘1. Bachelor's degree and 2,000 hours experience. Possess a bachelor's degree in dental hygiene from a dental hygiene program accredited by the American Dental Association Commission on Dental Accreditation, or its successor organization, and document one year or 2,000 work hours of clinical practice in a private dental practice or nonprofit dental clinic under direct or general supervision of a dentist during the 2 4 years preceding application; or
 
2. Associate degree and 5,000 hours experience. Possess an associate degree in dental hygiene from a dental hygiene program accredited by the American Dental Association Commission on Dental Accreditation, or its successor organization, and document 3 years or 6,0005,000 work hours of clinical practice in a private dental practice or nonprofit dental clinic under direct or general supervision of a dentist during the 6 years preceding application.’
 
SUMMARY
This amendment is the majority report of the committee. It removes the changes to the experience requirements for licensure as an independent practice dental hygienist proposed in the bill, which allowed an applicant to fulfill the experience requirements through work hours in any dental practice setting approved by the Board of Dental Examiners, and instead amends the experience requirements to:
1. Specify that an applicant's degree from a dental hygiene program must be a degree in dental hygiene;
2. With respect to applicants with a bachelor's degree, require that an applicant have 2,000 work hours of clinical practice, either in a private dental practice or a nonprofit dental clinic under direct or general supervision of a dentist, during the 4 years preceding application. Current law requires one year or 2,000 hours of clinical practice in a private dental practice during the 2 years preceding application; and
3. With respect to applicants with an associate degree, require that an applicant have 5,000 work hours of clinical practice, either in a private dental practice or a nonprofit dental clinic under direct or general supervision of a dentist, during the 6 years preceding application. Current law requires 3 years or 6,000 hours of clinical practice in a private dental practice during the 6 years preceding application.