A Toolkit to Promote Access and Quality Care Through Teledentistry
Teledentistry offers immense potential benefits for oral health care, but to realize these benefits, appropriate policies and regulations must be in place. This document identifies primary considerations for regulators and policymakers regarding teledentistry. Key recommendations include:
- Public and private entities that pay for health services must pay for covered oral health services regardless of whether they are provided through teledentistry or in person.
- Teledentistry modalities include both real-time, synchronous and store-and-forward, asynchronous interactions. Payment policies should not change based on a difference in modality.
- Rules about scope of practice and payment should be coordinated to ensure that providers are allowed to provide services using teledentistry modalities and can be paid for covered oral health services irrespective of whether they are provided using teledentistry methodologies or in-person encounters.
These model teledentistry rules can form a basis for discussions on how to improve the regulatory climate for teledentistry moving forward.
You may also be interested in:
- Refining the Process: Safety Net Dental Professionals’ Experiences with Teledentistry Implementation During the First Year of COVID-19, an article in the Journal of Public Health Dentistry shares key findings from interviews with 21 dental professionals about their experience with teledentistry during the first year of the pandemic — and what those professionals envision for the future of teledentistry.
- Teledentistry Helps Provide the Right Care at the Right Time, a research report that examines follow-up treatment and oral health outcomes for patients after a teledentistry visit.
- Building a Teledentistry Program That Expands Access and Increases Equity, a webinar recording that explores how to set up different types of teledentistry programs and shares common pitfalls to avoid.
