YES - there is a dental hygiene shortage which is not new.  YES - the military train its staff who are not hygienist to scale (level of proficiency notwithstanding, since most of my career i have heard the "horror stories") YES - whether it passes or not, you CAN, WILL and DO inevitably go subgingival when scaling. (always have and always will)  The rigidity of the laws then and now do not negate the obvious.

NO - it is not a reason to pass it simply to boot out the hygienist and or start a wage war. (which we ALL know will happen, especially in these times)

NO - there is no amount of argument/debate that can refute the each hygienist that has gone through training, blood sweat and tears to obtain degrees and licensure EARNED IT.  You can ON THE JOB TRAIN for some things but not EVERYTHING. Even with WHATEVER requisite classroom hours and or hands on instruction will be involved unless you add another YEAR AT LEAST to a dental assistant's training, it will not be enough.

IF THE INTENT is to bring help to the areas that need them the most, what makes us think that the DA II will travel to remote areas to work when the hygienist and the dentists (on the whole) will not? Presently i am the Program Manager for a mobile dental van program in Richmond.  Our mission is to provide quality service to the underserved and uninsured.  My populus is primarily Latino and African American, most of whom have not had regular dental visits in five plus years.  I would venture to say there are some hygienist who would be daunted by the care needed in the field, and we are talking about the capital city of Virginia. 

Everyone needs to think carefully about these issues and make the best decision for the clients we serve.