ADA Code updates address ethical concerns with social media influencers

2025 edition also includes current list of dental specialties

Additions to the ADA Principles of Ethics and Code of Professional Conduct for 2025 address ethical concerns with the use of social media influencers by dental practitioners and dental practitioners acting as influencers themselves.

“The ADA Council on Ethics, Bylaws and Judicial Affairs believes it is important to specifically address social media and influencers as they have become common channels employed to advertise and market dental products and services,” said Kelly Roth, D.D.S., chair of the council. “Truthfulness and fairness should always be in the forefront of dentists’ minds when putting any information out into the world — cyber or otherwise — so that the well-being of patients is ensured.”

The additions include:

• New Advisory Opinion 5.F.7. Social Media: This advisory opinion emphasizes the ethical obligation to present factual information to the public and provides multiple examples of unsubstantiated claims on social media platforms. It extends the criterion of “false or misleading in a material respect” to cover statements made by influencers. It also includes influencers among those who must disclose any paid partnerships with vendors when endorsing a product or service.

• Additions to Advisory Opinion 4.E.1. Split Fees in Advertising and Marketing Services: This opinion now includes influencers. It categorizes the hiring of influencers as “fee splitting” if the influencer is paid some amount or percentage of the professional fees collected from actual or prospective patients.

“The council brought forward these additions to explain and clarify the application of the ethical principles of veracity and justice — truthfulness and fairness, respectively — to the use of social media and influencers by dentists and those who market dental products and services claimed to be therapeutic,” Dr. Roth said.

The 2025 edition of the ADA Code also includes the additions of dental anesthesiology, oral medicine and orofacial pain to 5.H. Announcement of Specialization and Limitation of Practice to reflect the current list of dental specialties recognized by the National Commission on Recognition of Dental Specialties and Certifying Boards.

To view the latest version of the code, visit ADA.org/ethics.