(a) Any of the following entities may employ licensees and dental assistants and charge for the professional services they render, and shall not be deemed to be practicing dentistry within the meaning of Section 1625:
(1) A primary care clinic that is licensed pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 1204 of the Health and Safety Code.
(2) A primary care clinic that is exempt from licensure pursuant to subdivision (b), (c), or (h) of Section 1206 of the Health and Safety Code.
(3) A clinic owned or operated by a public hospital or health system.
(4) A clinic owned and operated by a hospital that maintains the primary contract with a county government to fill the county’s role under Section 17000 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.
(b) The entities described in subdivision (a) shall not interfere with, control, or otherwise direct the professional judgment of a licensee or dental assistant lawfully acting within the licensee’s or dental assistant’s scope of practice as defined in this chapter. A requirement that licensees shall constitute all or a percentage of the governing body of the entity shall not be applicable to these entities.
(Amended by Stats. 2019, Ch. 865, Sec. 20. (AB 1519) Effective January 1, 2020.)