Recently, the Atlanta-based company White Smile USA and at least one other Georgia company that provides the same service were served a voluntary cease-and-desist letter from the Georgia Board of Dentistry, according to an article in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Like other state dental boards, the Georgia Board of Dentistry says this practice is "the unlicensed practice of dentistry."
Tennessee, Oklahoma, and Alabama have all taken measures to ban commercial teeth-whitening operations.
"They have no dental training," said Richard Smith, D.D.S., of Atlanta in the Journal-Constitution article. "I have deep reservations about the level of sterilization."
"Ninety-five percent of this is dentists trying to protect their turf," said Jim Valentine, one of the owners of White Smile, in the article.
Copyright © 2009 DrBicuspid.com
Related Reading
Teeth-whitening kiosks face legal trouble in Alabama, February 26, 2009
Tenn. bans teeth-whitening kiosks at the mall, January 13, 2009
Tenn. dental board bans teeth-whitening kiosks, January 9, 2009
Teeth-whitening kiosks not OK in OK, July 22, 2008
Price makes teeth whitening more attractive at the mall, June 5, 2008