N.M. governor authorizes dental services to resume
State health officials say Phase 1 reopening guidelines will apply
New Mexico dentists in all but three counties may resume providing non-essential dental care, provided they agree to comply with guidelines developed to protect the supply of personal protective equipment, state health officials announced May 8.
The authorization to resume excludes San Juan, McKinley and Cibola counties, which are still fighting a surge of COVID-19 cases.
The New Mexico Medical Advisory Team developed the set of Phase I reopening guidelines for dentists in collaboration with the New Mexico Dental Association. They include a PPE burn rate calculator that dental providers can use to determine how quickly they are using up PPE such as masks, face shields, gloves and gowns.
The guidelines were developed to ration and preserve the state’s supply of personal protective equipment in response to the public health emergency caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham issued a public health order on April 30 to protect New Mexico’s supply of PPE required by healthcare workers to stay safe during the outbreak of COVID-19, a disease caused by a novel coronavirus.
Dental providers must submit the required form affirming that they will comply with the guidelines. They can download the form and submit it online at cv.nmhealth.org under the clinician information link.
All medical and dental providers are asked to use professional judgment to determine which health care services can be delayed and which should be provided, based on the best interests of the patient.