Government Relations
SB 614: Primary Care Preceptorship Program for Community Health Centers
• Authorizes the Pennsylvania Department of Health to establish a Federally Qualified Health Clinic( FQHC) primary care workforce initiative that includes different healthcare fields, including dentistry.
• Goal is to offer clinical rotations at FQHCs to students attending an accredited school.
• The legislature would appropriate $ 2.5 million for grants awarded under this preceptorship program.
• Sen. Brook’ s bill was introduced in April and assigned to the Senate Health and Human Services Committee.
HB 157: Rural Health Care Grant Program Act
• Incentivizes health care providers, including dentists and dental hygienists, to practice in rural areas of the Commonwealth.
• Facilities in rural areas may apply for grants to pay a provider’ s education debt.
• Providers must meet certain criteria to be eligible for loan repayment.
• Introduced by Rep. Kathy Rapp and reported out of the House Health Committee in February.
SB 842: Restricted licenses for internationally trained dentists
• Allows internationally trained dentists who serve as faculty to practice at dental schools and their affiliated health care facilities under a restricted license.
• Introduced by Senator Rosemary Brown and passed out of the Senate and the House Professional Licensure Committee in June.
SB 81 & HB 365: Dentist and Dental Hygienist Licensing Compact
• Rep. Frank Farry reintroduced legislation for the Commonwealth to enter to join the licensing compact endorsed by the American Association of Dental Boards. Rep. Kyle Mullins reintroduced legislation for the Commonwealth to join the licensing compact proposed by the Council on State Governments. Both bills are assigned to the House Professional Licensure Committee.
• The Department of State is working to resolve issues that arise due to the Commonwealth’ s laws on clearances, specifically having to do with FBI checks for out-of-state practitioners applying for a compact privilege.
HB 1460 & SB 708: Health system mergers and acquisitions
• Requires sufficient notice of health systems’ proposed mergers and acquisitions to the Attorney General’ s Office, to assess how potential closures, consolidations, and reductions will impact the community.
• PDA and other dental groups successfully lobbied for an amendment that exempts dental practices that are not affiliated with a hospital or health system.
8 NOVEMBER / DECEMBER 2025 | PENNSYLVANIA DENTAL JOURNAL