1636.4. (a) The Legislature recognizes the need to ensure that graduates of foreign dental schools who have received an education that is equivalent to that of accredited institutions in the United States and that adequately prepares their students for the practice of dentistry shall be subject to the same licensure requirements as graduates of approved dental schools or colleges. It is the purpose of this section to provide for the evaluation of foreign dental schools and the approval of those foreign dental schools that provide an education that is equivalent to that of similar accredited institutions in the United States and that adequately prepare their students for the practice of dentistry.
(b) The board shall be responsible for the approval of foreign dental schools based on standards established pursuant to subdivision (d). The board may contract with outside consultants or a national professional organization to survey and evaluate foreign dental schools. The consultant or organization shall report to the board regarding its findings in the survey and evaluation.
(c) (1) The board shall establish a technical advisory group to review and comment upon the survey and evaluation of a foreign dental school contracted for pursuant to subdivision (b), prior to any final action by the board regarding certification of the foreign dental school. The technical advisory group shall be selected by the board and shall consist of four dentists, two of whom shall be selected from a list of five recognized United States dental educators recommended by the foreign school seeking approval. None of the members of the technical advisory group shall be affiliated with the school seeking certification.
(2) If the board does not contract for the evaluation pursuant to subdivision (b), no technical advisory group shall be established and the evaluation team for the schoolsite shall provide its report directly to the board.
(d) Any foreign dental school that wishes to be approved pursuant to this section shall make application to the board for this approval, which shall be based upon a finding that the educational program of the foreign dental school is equivalent to that of similar accredited institutions in the United States and adequately prepares its students for the practice of dentistry. Curriculum, faculty qualifications, student attendance, plant and facilities, and other relevant factors shall be reviewed and evaluated. The board, with the cooperation of the technical advisory group, shall identify by rule the standards and review procedures and methodology to be used in the approval process consistent with this subdivision. The board shall not grant approval if deficiencies found are of such magnitude as to prevent the students in the school from receiving an educational base suitable for the practice of dentistry.
(e) Periodic surveys and evaluations of all approved schools shall be made to ensure continued compliance with this section. Approval shall include provisional and full approval. The provisional form of approval shall be for a period determined by the board, not to exceed three years, and shall be granted to an institution, in accordance with rules established by the board, to provide reasonable time for the school seeking permanent approval to overcome deficiencies found by the board. Prior to the expiration of a provisional approval and before the full approval is granted, the school shall be required to submit evidence that deficiencies noted at the time of initial application have been remedied. A school granted full approval shall provide evidence of continued compliance with this section. In the event that the board denies approval or reapproval, the board shall give the school a specific listing of the deficiencies that caused the denial and the requirements for remedying the deficiencies, and shall permit the school, upon request, to demonstrate by satisfactory evidence, within 90 days, that it has remedied the deficiencies listed by the board.
(f) A school shall pay a registration fee established by rule of the board, not to exceed one thousand dollars ($1,000), at the time of application for approval and shall pay all reasonable costs and expenses the board incurs for the conduct of the approval survey.
(g) The board shall renew approval upon receipt of a renewal application, accompanied by a fee not to exceed five hundred dollars ($500). Each fully approved institution shall submit a renewal application every seven years. Any approval that is not renewed shall automatically expire.
(h) (1) Beginning January 1, 2020, the board shall not accept new applications for schools seeking approval as a foreign dental school and shall instead require the applicant to successfully complete the international consultative and accreditation process with the Commission on Dental Accreditation of the American Dental Association or a comparable accrediting body approved by the board.
(2) An application submitted under this section must be deemed a complete application pursuant to the rules promulgated by the board prior to January 1, 2020, in order to be accepted.
(3) Notwithstanding any other law, a school required to submit a renewal application after January 1, 2020, shall not submit that application and shall be deemed approved until January 1, 2024, subject to the continued compliance of the school as described in subdivision (e).
(i) By January 1, 2024, in order to remain an approved foreign dental school in the state, all schools previously approved by the board as a foreign dental school shall have successfully completed the international consultative and accreditation process with the Commission on Dental Accreditation of the American Dental Association or a comparable accrediting body approved by the board. Graduates of a foreign dental school whose programs were approved at the time of graduation shall be eligible for licensure pursuant to Section 1628.
(j) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2024, and as of that date is repealed.
(Amended by Stats. 2019, Ch. 865, Sec. 35. (AB 1519) Effective January 1, 2020. Repealed as of January 1, 2024, by its own provisions. See later operative version added by Sec. 36 of Stats. 2019, Ch. 865.)
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