Kansas would enter interstate dentistry compact under new bill

A bill in Kansas would enter the state into the Dentist and Dental Hygienist Compact. 

House Bill 2453 unanimously passed the state House and awaits action in the state Senate. As one of the states without a dental school, Kansas depends on recruiting dentists entirely from other states or from Kansans going to dental school elsewhere and returning home.

The Dentist and Dental Hygienist Compact would create standardized credentials among participant states and reduce the barriers to license portability. 

Entering Kansas into the DDH Compact makes it easier for dentists and dental hygienists who already have an active, unencumbered license in another participating state to immediately begin practicing in Kansas or vice versa.

In addition, as a state whose population resides primarily on its borders with other states, licensure portability is key to maintaining access to care. Kansas’ neighbors Colorado, Nebraska and Missouri all have active bills that would also adopt the DDH Compact. Five states — Washington, Iowa, Tennessee, Wisconsin and Virginia — have already joined the compact. Seven states must enact the compact in order to activate it.

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