Illinois Dental Hygienists Disappointed Over Exclusion in COVID-19 Vaccine Efforts
The Illinois Dental Hygienists’ Association (IDHA) has issued a statement on the state’s Department of Financial and Professional Regulation’s decision to invoke their emergency powers to modify the professional license and certification statutes, along with regulations for Illinois licensed dentists to administer COVID-19 vaccines. Unfortunately, this proclamation did not include dental hygienists.
The Illinois Dental Hygienists’ Association (IDHA) has issued a statement on the state’s Department of Financial and Professional Regulation’s decision to invoke their emergency powers to modify the professional license and certification statutes, along with regulations for Illinois licensed dentists to administer COVID-19 vaccines. Unfortunately, this proclamation did not include dental hygienists.
Illinois has approximately 9,000 licensed dental hygienists proficient in administering local anesthetic injections, which are significantly more complicated to give than vaccinations. Dental hygienists deployment to provide COVID-19 vaccine administration would dramatically reduce the massive shortage of COVID-19 vaccinators, according to the IDHA.
“Per the Illinois Dental Practice Act statute for dental responders, (225 ILCS 25/54.2) a dental hygienist or dentist who is a dental responder is deemed to be acting within the bounds of his or her license when providing disaster immunizations, mobile and humanitarian care, during a declared State or National emergency,” says Sherri Foran, RDH, BSDH, MPA, PHDH, president of the IDHA. “We are qualified healthcare professionals who are ready to be part of the solution in Illinois. States that have included dental hygienists to provide COVID-19 vaccines include: Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maryland, Nevada, New York, Ohio, Rhode Island, and Washington.”
Idaho, Kentucky, South Carolina and California have recently been added to the list of states that allow dental hygienists to administer the COVID-19 vaccine.
Healthcare students have permission to vaccinate, while dental hygienists, who are already licensed to administer injections, have been overlooked as volunteers.
IDHA states this news is met with great disappointment and leaves the public with fewer vaccinators to hasten herd immunity against COVID-19 in Illinois.
