(1) (a) An
applicant for a dentist license or a dentist applying to renew or reinstate the
dentist's license must, at the time of application, pay to the administering entity
that has been selected by the board pursuant to subsection (1)(b) of this section a
fee not to exceed fifty-nine dollars per year, which maximum amount may be
adjusted on January 1, 2005, and annually thereafter by the board to reflect
changes in the United States department of labor's bureau of labor statistics
consumer price index, or a successor index, for Denver-Aurora-Lakewood for all
urban consumers or goods. The fee shall be used to support designated providers
that have been selected by the board to provide assistance to dentists needing help
in dealing with physical, emotional, or psychological problems that may be
detrimental to their ability to practice dentistry. The fee must not exceed one
hundred dollars per year per licensee.
(b) The board shall select one or more peer health assistance programs as
designated providers. The board or the department must provide public notice when
a peer health assistance program is being considered for selection as a designated
provider and shall provide a process for stakeholders and the public to provide
input to the board regarding the selection of a designated provider. To be eligible
for designation by the board, a peer health assistance program must:
(I) Provide for the education of dentists with respect to the recognition and
prevention of physical, emotional, and psychological problems and provide for
intervention when necessary or under circumstances that may be established by
rules promulgated by the board;
(II) Offer assistance to a dentist in identifying physical, emotional, or
psychological problems;
(III) Evaluate the extent of physical, emotional, or psychological problems
and refer the dentist for appropriate treatment;
(IV) Monitor the status of a dentist who has been referred for treatment,
including providing training to dentists providing practice monitoring services;
(V) Provide counseling and support for the dentist and for the family of any
dentist referred for treatment;
(VI) Agree to receive referrals from the board;
(VII) Agree to make its services available to all licensed Colorado dentists.
(c) The administering entity must be a qualified, nonprofit foundation that is
qualified under section 501 (c)(3) of the federal Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as
amended, and must be dedicated to providing support for charitable, benevolent,
educational, and scientific purposes that are related to dentistry, dental education,
dental research and science, and other dental charitable purposes.
(d) The administering entity shall:
(I) Collect the required annual payments, directly or through the board;
(II) Verify to the board, in a manner acceptable to the board, the names of all
dentist applicants who have paid the fee set by the board;
(III) Distribute the money collected, less expenses, to the designated
provider, as directed by the board;
(IV) Provide an annual accounting to the board of all amounts collected,
expenses incurred, and amounts disbursed; and
(V) Post a surety performance bond in an amount specified by the board to
secure performance under the requirements of this section. The administering
entity may recover the actual administrative costs incurred in performing its duties
under this section in an amount not to exceed ten percent of the total amount
collected.
(e) The board may collect the required annual payments payable to the
administering entity for the benefit of the administering entity and shall transfer
the payments to the administering entity. All required annual payments collected or
due to the board for each fiscal year are deemed custodial funds that are not
subject to appropriation by the general assembly, and the funds do not constitute
state fiscal year spending for purposes of section 20 of article X of the state
constitution.
(2) (a) Any dentist who is a referred participant in a peer health assistance
program shall enter into a written agreement with the board prior to the dentist
becoming a participant in the program. The agreement must contain specific
requirements and goals to be met by the participant, including the conditions under
which the program will be successfully completed or terminated, and a provision
that a failure to comply with the requirements and goals shall be promptly reported
to the board and that the failure results in disciplinary action by the board.
(b) Notwithstanding sections 12-220-201 and 24-4-104, the board may
immediately suspend the license of a dentist who is referred to a peer health
assistance program by the board and who fails to attend or complete the program.
If the dentist objects to the suspension, the dentist may submit a request to the
board, in a format approved by the board, for a formal hearing on the suspension
within ten days after receiving notice of the suspension, and the board shall grant
the request. In the hearing, the dentist bears the burden of proving that the
dentist's license should not be suspended.
(c) Any dentist who is accepted into a peer health assistance program in lieu
of disciplinary action by the board shall affirm that, to the best of the dentist's
knowledge, information, and belief, the dentist knows of no instance in which the
dentist has violated this article 220 or the rules of the board, except in those
instances affected by the dentist's physical, emotional, or psychological problems.
(d) A dentist may self-refer to participate in the peer health assistance
program or may be referred by the board. A dentist who self-refers to the peer
health assistance program may do so confidentially and without direct notification
to the board. Such self-referral to the peer health assistance program satisfies
board notification requirements set forth in section 12-220-207 and subsection (3)
of this section; except that the peer health assistance program shall report
knowledge of a dentist's violation of this article 220 or rules of the board, excluding
knowledge of violations of section 12-220-201 (1)(e) or (1)(f).
(3) If a dentist is arrested for a drug- or alcohol-related offense, the dentist
shall self-refer to the peer health assistance program within thirty days after the
arrest for an evaluation and referral for treatment as necessary. If the dentist self-refers, the evaluation by the program is confidential and cannot be used as
evidence in any proceeding other than before the board. If a dentist fails to comply
with this subsection (3), the failure, alone, is not grounds for discipline under
sections 12-220-201 and 12-220-202 unless the dentist has also committed an act
or omission specified in section 12-220-201, other than an act or omission specified
in section 12-220-201 (1)(e) or (1)(f).
(4) Nothing in this section creates any liability on behalf of the board or the
state of Colorado for the actions of the board members in making grants to peer
assistance programs, and no civil action may be brought or maintained against the
board or the state for an injury alleged to have been the result of the activities of
any state-funded peer assistance program or of an act or omission of a dentist
participating in or referred by a state-funded peer assistance program. However,
the state remains liable under the Colorado Governmental Immunity Act, article
10 of title 24, if an injury alleged to have been the result of an act or omission of a
dentist participating in or referred by a state-funded peer assistance program
occurred while the dentist was performing duties as an employee of the state.
(5) The board may adopt rules necessary to implement this section.