Continuing Education Requirements

Mandatory Continuing Education
Each RDH and RDHEF must complete 25 approved CE units during each two-year renewal period. The RDHAP must complete 35 approved CE units. Tape recorded courses and correspondence courses approved by the Dental Board shall be accepted up to, but not exceeding, half of the total required credit. Therefore, the RDH and RDHEF may take up to 12½ of such units and the RDHAP may take up to 17 ½ of such units. Interactive instruction courses via computers, telephone conferences, video conferencing or other electronic mediums approved by the Dental Board are accepted for full credit. Each licensee must complete, at least once every two years, a course in basic life support approved by the American Red Cross or the American Heart Association.

As of January 1, 2004, all licentiates (RDH, RDA and DDS) applying for license renewal, must complete 2 units of continuing education in infection control and 2 continuing education units in California Law. Visit http://www.comda.ca.gov/ for more information on continuing education requirements.

At the time of the licensure renewal, the licensee must sign under penalty of perjury that the required number of approved CE units have been completed in the two-year renewal period. Please note that no CE units are required during the first renewal period after a license is first issued. Licensees are expected to keep proof of CE unit completion and must provide this to the Dental Board if audited.

The provider sponsoring the CE program must be registered with the Dental Board of California for the course to be approved, however, each individual course is not pre-approved by the Dental Board. If you have questions as to whether or not a provider has a current registration number, contact the Dental Board at (916) 263-2300.

Further information and FAQ's on continuing education and licensure renewal can be found on the COMDA web site at http://www.comda.ca.gov/. For more information on continuing education courses available in your area, check the Event Calendars section of CDHA's web site.