Code of Alabama

Ala. Code § 34-9-1 (2026)

Definitions.

✓ official Alabama Legislature (ALISON) text, current July 2026

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For the purposes of this chapter, the following terms have the respective meanings ascribed by this section:

(1) ADMINISTER. When used in reference to a controlled substance, the direct application of a controlled substance to the body of a patient by a dentist by injection, inhalation, ingestion, or other means.

(2) ANNUAL REGISTRATION. The documentary evidence that the board has renewed the authority of the licensee to practice dentistry or dental hygiene in this state.

(3) BOARD. The Board of Dental Examiners of Alabama.

(4) COMMERCIAL DENTAL LABORATORY. A technician or group of technicians available to any or all licensed dentists for construction or repair of dental appliances.

(5) DISPENSE. When used in reference to a controlled substance, the delivery of a controlled substance to a patient by a dentist, including the prescribing and administering of a controlled substance.

(6) GENERAL ANESTHESIA. A controlled state of unconsciousness, accompanied by a partial or complete loss of protective reflexes, including inability to independently maintain an airway and respond purposefully to physical stimulation or verbal command, produced by a pharmacologic method.

(7) INFILTRATION ANESTHESIA. A form of local anesthesia wherein the terminal or peripheral sensory portion of either the maxillary or mandibular branch of the trigeminal nerve endings are anesthetized by injecting a solution submucosally into an intra-oral circumscribed area for the relief or prevention of pain.

(8) LICENSE. The grant of authority by the board to an individual to engage in the practice of dentistry or dental hygiene.

(9) LICENSE CERTIFICATE. The documentary evidence under seal of the board that the board has granted authority to the licensee to practice dentistry or dental hygiene in this state.

(10) LICENSED DENTIST. A dentist who holds a current license certificate from the board.

(11) LICENSED HYGIENIST. A hygienist who holds a current license certificate from the board.

(12) LOCAL ANESTHESIA. The elimination of sensations, especially pain in one part of the body by topical application or regional injection of a drug.

(13) PATIENT ABANDONMENT. The termination of dental treatment without giving the patient adequate notice of at least 15 days before the termination of dental treatment. Adequate notice includes informing the patient of the availability of emergency treatment and providing the patient with an opportunity to obtain the services of another dentist during the notice period. Abandonment may also occur if the dentist jeopardizes the health of the patient during the termination process.

(14) PRACTICE OF DENTISTRY ACROSS STATE LINES.

a. The practice of dentistry as defined in Section 34-9-6 as it applies to the following:

1. The rendering of a written or otherwise documented professional opinion concerning the diagnosis or treatment of a patient located within this state by a dentist located outside this state as a result of transmission of individual patient data by electronic or other means from within this state to the dentist or his or her agent.

2. The rendering of treatment to a patient located within this state by a dentist located outside this state as a result of transmission of individual patient data by electronic or other means from this state to the dentist or his or her agent.

3. The holding of himself or herself out as qualified to practice dentistry, or the use of any title, word, or abbreviation to indicate or induce others to believe that he or she is licensed to practice dentistry across state lines.

b. This definition is not intended to include an informal consultation between a licensed dentist located in this state and a dentist located outside this state, provided that the consultation is conducted without compensation or the expectation of compensation to either dentist, and does not result in the formal rendering of a written or otherwise documented professional opinion concerning the diagnosis or treatment of a patient by the dentist located outside the state.

(15) PRIVATE TECHNICIAN. A technician employed by a dentist or group of dentists for a specified salary.

(16) SEDATION. A depressed level of consciousness that retains the patient’s ability to independently and continuously maintain an airway and respond appropriately to physical stimulation or verbal command, produced by a pharmacologic method.

(Acts 1959, No. 100, p. 569, §34; Acts 1985, No. 85-697, §1; Act 99-402, p. 669, §1; Act 2009-18, p. 43, §3; Act 2013-252, p. 626, §1; Act 2018-274, §1; Act 2023-362, §1.)

Notes of Decisions

Cited in 8 cases, 1986–2019 · leading case: Robert Burton & Assocs., Ltd. v. Morris, 999 So. 2d 932 (Ala. 2008).

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Robert Burton & Assocs., Ltd. v. Morris, 999 So. 2d 932 (Ala. 2008). · cites it 2× “§ 34-9-1 et seq. (2000) (“the Georgia Act”), tolls the statute of limitations for filing a claim under the Alabama Workers’ Compensation Act, Ala.”

Powell v. Sappington, 495 So. 2d 569 (Ala. 1986). “Georgia Code 1981, § 34-9-1, defines "employee" for purposes of workmen's compensation as "every person in the service of another under any contract of hire or apprenticeship.”

Ex Parte Fluor Corp., 960 So. 2d 701 (Ala. Civ. App. 2006). “, §§ 34-9-1 through 34-9-421] relative to the payment of compensation shall hereafter keep a record of all injuries, fatal or otherwise, received by his employees in the course of their employment on blanks approved by the board.”

Robert Burton & Assocs., Ltd. v. Morris, 999 So. 2d 927 (Ala. Civ. App. 2007). “The employer acknowledged that the employee’s back injury arose out of and in the course of his employment, and it commenced making payments of benefits to the employee under the Georgia Workers’ Compensation Act, § 34-9-1 et seq., Ga.Code Ann. (2000) (“the Georgia Act”).”

DDS v. Bd. of Dental Examiners of Ala., 382 F. Supp. 3d 1214 (N.D. Ala. 2019). · cites it 2× “The Board's cease-and-desist letter and subsequent communications were based on certain provisions of the Alabama Dental *1224 Practice Act, Ala. Code § 34-9-1 et seq. , and a regulation promulgated by the Board pursuant to its authority to "[a]dopt rules and regulations to…”

W.A.A. v. Bd. of Dental Examiners of Alabama, 180 So. 3d 25 (Ala. Civ. App. 2015). · cites it 2× “Code 1975, § 34-9-18(a)(4) (a portion of the Alabama Dental Practice Act (“ADPA”), Ala. Code 1975, § 34-9-1 et seq.), “by being a habitual user of intoxicants or drugs rendering [him] unfit for the practice of dentistry based upon [his] habit of using controlled substances”…”

McDaniel v. Helmerich & Payne Int'l Drilling Co., 112 So. 3d 41 (Ala. Civ. App. 2012). “§ 34-9-1 et seq.].” The employee in the present case, in order to keep his job, was required by the employer to drive from his home in Alexandria, Louisiana, to report to rig 136 in Mobile County.”

Westphal v. Northcutt, 187 So. 3d 684 (Ala. 2015). “West-phal and Wilson sought a judgment declaring unconstitutional the portion of the Alabama Dental Practice Act, § 34-9-1 et seq-., Ala.Code 1975, that makes it unlawful for anyone other than a duly licensed dentist to perform teeth-whitening services and soüght a permanent…”

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