Mississippi Dental Practice Act
What the Act does
The Mississippi Dental Practice Act, Miss. Code Ann. § 73-9-1 et seq., is the statute that creates the State Board of Dental Examiners, defines the practice of dentistry and dental hygiene, sets licensure and disciplinary authority, and makes unlicensed practice unlawful. Exam questions test whether you can classify conduct as within the Act, outside it, or delegated to Board rules.
Core rules
- A person may not practice dentistry or dental hygiene, or hold out as a licensee, without a Mississippi license.
- The Act defines dentistry broadly: diagnosis, treatment, surgery, prescribing, and procedures on teeth, jaws, and associated structures.
- Dental hygiene is a defined subset performed by licensed hygienists under the supervision required by statute and Board rule.
- The Board adopts regulations, investigates complaints, and imposes discipline; statutory violations can also be criminal.
- Exemptions are narrow and must be read exactly; they do not create general independent practice.
Worked example
A person without a license takes alginate impressions and delivers a whitening tray directly to a consumer. Is this dental practice? The reasoning: taking impressions and fitting an appliance are procedures on oral structures and involve treatment decisions, so they fall within the statutory definition of dentistry. The absence of a dentist's chair or clinic does not matter. The person is practicing without a license unless a specific exemption applies.
Traps
- Assuming "hygiene" is outside dentistry; it is a licensed part of dental practice.
- Treating an exemption as a loophole for routine care.
- Confusing Board rule violations with statutory violations; both can support discipline.