034-6 Wyo. Code R. §§ 6-5 - Veracity

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.

(ii) For purposes of this rule, a "qualifying postdoctoral educational program" is a postdoctoral advanced dental educational program accredited by an agency recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.

(iii) In determining whether an organization is a qualifying specialty board or organization, the Board shall consider the following criteria:

(A) whether the organization requires completion of an educational program with didactic, clinical, and experiential requirements appropriate for the specialty or subspecialty field of dentistry in which the dentist seeks certification, and the collective didactic, clinical and experiential requirements are similar in scope and complexity to a qualifying postdoctoral educational program. Programs that require solely experiential training, continuing education classes, on-the-job training, or payment to the specialty board shall not constitute a qualifying specialty board or organization;

(B) whether the organization requires all dentists seeking certification to pass a written or oral examination, or both, that tests the applicant's knowledge and skill in the specialty or subspecialty area of dentistry and includes a psychometric evaluation for validation;

(C) whether the organization has written rules on maintenance of certification and requires periodic recertification;

(D) whether the organization has written by-laws and a code of ethics to guide the practice of its members;

(E) whether the organization has staff to respond to consumer and regulatory inquiries; and

(F) whether the organization is recognized by another entity whose primary purpose is to evaluate and assess dental specialty boards and organizations.

(iv) A dentist qualifying under subsection (iii) of this rule and advertising or otherwise holding himself or herself out to the public as a specialist, or any variation of that term, shall disclose in the advertisement or communication the specialty board by which the dentist was certified and provide information about the certification criteria or where the certification criteria may be located.

(v) A dentist shall maintain documentation of either completion of a qualifying postdoctoral educational program or of his or her current specialty certification and provide the documentation to the Board upon request. Dentists shall maintain documentation demonstrating that the certifying board qualifies under the criteria in subsection (iii) of this rule and provide the documentation to the Board upon request.

(q) Superior Designation. A dentist shall not hold himself out as an expert or imply superiority.

(r) General Practitioner Announcement of Services. General dentists who wish to announce the services available in their practices are permitted to announce the availability of those services so long as they avoid any communication that express or imply specialization. General dentist shall also state that the specialty services are being provided by general dentists. That disclaimer shall appear in same font and size as the advertised specialty service. A dentist shall not announce available services in any way that would be false or misleading in any material respect.

(s) Dental Practice Ownership Disclosure. If the name or ownership of the dental practice differs from the dentist(s) providing the services, the dentist providing services shall provide a written disclosure that indicates any and all individuals with a financial interest in the dental practice to be signed by the patient.

Notes

034-6 Wyo. Code R. §§ 6-5

Amended, Eff. 4/7/2015. Amended, Eff. 9/26/2017. Amended, Eff. 12/9/2019.