Laws and Rules

In order to keep you abreast of current laws, we have compiled the following information.

Jurisprudence Examination
Each applicant for a dental or dental hygiene license is required to successfully complete a written jurisprudence exam.  Please review both the Dental Practice Act AND the Board Rules prior to taking this test.  Both may be found below.

Louisiana Revised Statutes
These are laws passed by the Louisiana Legislature and are updated each year following the legislative session.
      Dental Practice Act (amended through the 2022 session)

Board Rules
These are rules promulgated by the Louisiana State Board of Dentistry.  As rulemaking is an ongoing process, we will update the following document as changes are published.
Title 46 Professional and Occupational Standards
      Part XXXIII - Dental Health Professions (updated August 2023)

Infection Control in Dental Offices
All dental health care providers shall strictly observe recognized standard precautions as currently recommended by the Federal Centers for Disease Control (CDC).  The board conducts inspections of all dental offices within Louisiana to ensure compliance with this requirement.  The current CDC guidelines may be found at the first link below.
       CDC Guidelines for Infection Control in Dental Health-Care Settings (2003)
For a summary of the CDC guidelines and recommendations, please see click here:
       CDC Summary of Recommendations

All documents are available in Adobe Acrobat Format (*.pdf). Adobe offers a free plug-in viewer on its website.

DISCLAIMER: These publications are intended to facilitate the understanding of the Louisiana Dental Practice Act and promulgated rules and other applicable regulations. It is not to be considered an official statement of the law which is found at L.R.S. 37:751 et seq. and Title 46 Chapter 33 of the Louisiana Administrative Code.