Debate in Concord over bill to let patients decline routine dental X-rays
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Summary
Representative Mike Drago said HB 12-86 would protect patient autonomy and prevent dentists from refusing routine cleanings when patients decline radiographs; dentists and hygienists warned the measure could weaken standards of care and risk missed diagnoses, especially for children.
Representative Mike Drago told the committee HB 12-86 arose from personal experience and would prohibit dentists from refusing routine preventive cleanings when a patient declines bite-wing radiographs. He framed the bill as protecting informed consent and patient choice while providing limited liability protection for dentists who accept written waivers.
"If something's not completely safe, it should not be forced upon you," Drago said, describing concerns about cumulative radiation exposure and explaining the bill would protect both patients and dentists when a patient declines X-rays.
Opposing the measure, practicing dentists and professionals described X-rays as a critical diagnostic tool, particularly for children. Lori Rosado, a general dentist, warned that radiographs detect pathology and hidden decay that visual exams can miss and said waiver language may not protect clinicians in court.
"A child can die," Rosado said, recounting an example of an undiagnosed infection that became life-threatening. Joan Fitzgerald, advocacy chair for the New Hampshire Dental Hygienist Association, told senators radiographs are central to disease prevention and that permitting patients to decline necessary radiographs could increase the risk of delayed or missed diagnoses.
Patient witnesses and advocates urged the committee to preserve patients' right to decline and to avoid a practice in which access to routine care is conditioned on consenting to radiographs or paying additional costs that deter care. Leslie Nixon, who described difficulty finding a dentist willing to provide cleanings without X-rays, urged the committee to expand patient choice.
Senators exchanged questions about whether the bill should require dentists to accept waivers (move 'shall' to 'may') and whether changing statutory requirements for following CDC/ADA guidance would be an alternate solution. No committee vote was taken; the item closed after testimony and Q&A.
