To Whom It May Concern:

I am opposed to letting dental assistants scale teeth.    They do not have the extensive training, testing, and practical examinations that the registered dental hygienist has.  When we allow those with less training to perform these tasks, the level of patient care suffers.  I have seen this occur in the medical profession as well with the expanded duties of physician assistants.   Let's keep the level of patient care exemplary by allowing only registered dental hygienists to scale patients' teeth.

Thank you.

Sincerely,

Paulette H. Welch, MD