BILL ANALYSIS
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 205|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 205
Author: Ruskin (D)
Amended: 7/12/05 in Senate
Vote: 21
SENATE BUSINESS AND PROFESSIONS COMMITTEE : 6-0, 6/20/05
AYES: Figueroa, Campbell, Aanestad, Florez, Murray,
Simitian
NO VOTE RECORDED: Morrow
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 69-6, 04/18/05 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : Denture identification
SOURCE : California Senior Legislature
DIGEST : This bill revises the provisions for marking
dentures to remove the option of using the patient's social
security number.
ANALYSIS :
Existing Law
1. Provides for the licensing and regulation of the
practice of dentistry under the Dental Practice Act by
the Dental Board of California (Board).
2. Requires each upper or lower denture fabricated by a
dentist, or pursuant to a dentist's work order, to be
CONTINUED
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permanently and legibly marked with the patient's name or
social security number, unless the patient objects. The
law further provides with reference to denture
identification.
A. The initials of the patient alone may be shown, if
use of the patient's name is not practical.
B. The dentist must inform the patient that the
markings are to be used for identification only, and
the patient may choose which marking (i.e., either
name or social security number) is to appear on the
dentures.
C. The dentist must retain records of marked dentures
and shall not release the records except to specified
persons.
This bill revises the provisions for marking dentures to
remove the option of using the patient's social security
number and instead, to require the use of the patient's
name or initials only.
Background
The Dental Practice Act provisions relating to denture
identification was enacted in 1983 and provides for the use
of patient's name or social security number to identify
dentures, unless the patient objects to the dentures,
unless the patient objects to the dentures being marked for
identification. The provisions authorizing the use of
social security numbers for identification were made prior
to the concern in recent years for medical privacy and
identity theft.
In prior years, the practice of using social security
numbers for identification was common. Some states have
used social security numbers for driver license numbers.
Financial institutions have used it for account numbers.
Security companies and insurance companies have recommended
its use for anti-theft identification for common household
items. However, in recent years, concerted efforts have
been made by Legislatures, businesses and the public as a
whole to turn away from using social security numbers for
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identification.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: No
Local: No
SUPPORT : (Verified 7/12/05)
California Senior Legislature (source)
Area 1 Agency on Aging
California Dental Association
California Seniors Coalition
Gray Panthers
Placer Conty Older Adult Advisory Committee
San Joaquin County Commission on Aging
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : The California Dental Association
(CDA) writes in support of the bill that "while the social
security number has been used through the yeas as an
individual's identification number for numerous items, we
recognize that with the escalation of identity theft, the
use of social security numbers for identification purposes
must be curtailed. In addition, the federal HIPAA Privacy
Rule protects 'identifiable health information' which ties
a patient's identity with information about their health
condition, treatment for that condition or payment for that
treatment. Therefore, the use of a patient's social
security number on a set of dentures might be considered
the joining of the patient's identification with their
health condition. In the interest of protecting a patient's
privacy, removing the current optional practice of using a
person's social security number on the dentures is
advisable."
ASSEMBLY FLOOR :
AYES: Aghazarian, Arambula, Baca, Bass, Benoit, Berg,
Bermudez, Blakeslee, Bogh, Calderon, Canciamilla, Chan,
Chu, Cogdill, Cohn, Coto, Daucher, De La Torre, Dymally,
Emmerson, Frommer, Garcia, Goldberg, Hancock, Jerome
Horton, Shirley Horton, Houston, Huff, Jones, Karnette,
Keene, Klehs, Koretz, La Malfa, La Suer, Laird, Leno,
Levine, Lieber, Liu, Matthews, Maze, Montanez, Mountjoy,
Mullin, Nakanishi, Nation, Nava, Negrete McLeod, Parra,
Pavley, Plescia, Richman, Ridley-Thomas, Sharon Runner,
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Ruskin, Saldana, Salinas, Strickland, Torrico, Tran,
Umberg, Vargas, Villines, Walters, Wolk, Wyland, Yee,
Nunez
NOES: DeVore, Harman, Haynes, Leslie, Niello, Spitzer
NO VOTE RECORDED: Chavez, Evans, Gordon, McCarthy, Oropeza
JJA:do 7/13/05 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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