NY State Senate Bill 2025-S6744

Senate Bill S6744

2025-2026 Legislative Session

Permits dentists to administer influenza and COVID vaccinations and vaccinations related to a public health emergency

download bill text pdf

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Higher Education Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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Actions

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Mar 21, 2025	referred to higher education

2025-S6744 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A3894
Current Committee:: Senate Higher Education
Law Section:: Education Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §6601, Ed L
Versions Introduced in 2023-2024 Legislative Session:: S7356, A7855

2025-S6744 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Permits dentists to administer influenza and COVID vaccinations and vaccinations related to a declared public health emergency.

2025-S6744 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S6744

SPONSOR: STAVISKY
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the education law, in relation to permitting dentists to
administer influenza and COVID vaccinations and vaccinations related to
a public health emergency

 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:

  Section  1  amends  section  6601  of  the  education law to authorize
dentists to  administer  COVID-19,  influenza  vaccinations,  and  other
vaccinations related to a public health emergency.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

Since the authorizing Executive Order expired in June 2021, dentists are
no  longer Permitted to administer COVID-19, influenza vaccinations, and
other vaccinations related to public health emergencies.  Every  dentist
in  New  York  must have a four-year undergraduate degree, complete four
years of dental school, complete a one-year residency program, and  pass

a  National  Dental  Board examination. Dentists can administer Novocain
and other injectable medications. From a clinical perspective,  dentists
certainly  are just as qualified to administer vaccines as other profes-
sionals, such as pharmacists, nurses, physician assistants,  and  other,
health Paraprofessionals currently authorized to administer vaccines.

Dentists  frequently  communicate  with  primary  care professionals and
other medical professionals to provide wholistic care around a  patient.
This is particularly true where the dentist works in or with a federally
qualified  health  clinic (FQHC). FQHCs provide a wide range of services
including specialty, dental, sexual health, and Primary  and  preventive
care -- to underserved communities.

Allowing  dentists  to  administer  vaccinations  provides patients with
immediate access. Dentists can address questions and, when  appropriate,
administer  vaccinations when a patient is already at a medical appoint-
ment. This saves the patient from having  to  go  somewhere  else,  take
additional time off from work or school and/or find someone to take care
of a family member.

 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

2023/2024 - Passed Senate referred to higher education.

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This  act  shall  take  effect on the one hundred eightieth day after it
shall have become a law.

2025-S6744 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   6744
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                              March 21, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by Sen. STAVISKY -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Higher Education
 
 AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to permitting dentists to
   administer influenza and COVID vaccinations and  vaccinations  related
   to a public health emergency

   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Section 6601 of the education law, as  amended  by  chapter
 576 of the laws of 2001, is amended to read as follows:
   §  6601. Definition  of  practice  of  dentistry.  The practice of the
 profession of dentistry is defined as diagnosing,  treating,  operating,
 or  prescribing  for  any  disease, pain, injury, deformity, or physical
 condition of the oral and maxillofacial area related  to  restoring  and
 maintaining  dental  health.  The  practice  of  dentistry  includes the
 prescribing and fabrication of dental  prostheses  and  appliances.  The
 practice  of  dentistry  may  include performing physical evaluations in
 conjunction with the provision of  dental  treatment  AND  THE  ADMINIS-
 TRATION  OF  VACCINATIONS  AGAINST INFLUENZA AND SARS-COV-2 AND VACCINA-
 TIONS RELATED TO A DECLARED PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCY.
   § 2. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after
 it shall have become a law.
 
 
 
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD07634-01-5

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