Vermont 802 Smiles Network | Vermont Department of Health

Vermont 802 Smiles Network | Vermont Department of Health
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Vermont 802 Smiles Network
Oral Health
Oral Health Resources For Individuals & Families
Vermont 802 Smiles Network
Dental & General Health
Dental Care & Insurance
Pregnancy and Childhood
Fluoride
Resources for Families, Schools & Worksites
Resources for Health Professionals
About the 802 Smiles Network
We bring together students, school nurses and staff, communities and healthcare providers to support access to dental care and achieve the best possible oral health for all Vermont children.
Watch a more detailed video about the 802 Smiles Network
Important Links
FAQs for Dental Providers
802 Smiles Dentists' Feedback Summary
802 Smiles Data Site User Manual
Demo of the New 802 Smiles Data Site
5 Tiers of School-Based Dental Services
The 802 Smiles Network is made up of five tiers that align with the range of dental services offered. The highest Tiers (4 and 5) offer the most services, although organizations in every tier play an important part in helping kids access dental care.
Tier 1
focuses on referring children to a dental provider, plus student dental health education, on-site dental screenings, and preventive fluoride varnish application in some schools.
Tier 2
includes all the services of Tier 1, plus transportation to and from dental appointments.
Tier 3
includes dental referrals, student dental education and screenings, plus fluoride varnish and silver diamine fluoride (SDF) applications.
Tier 4
provides on-site preventive dental health services like cleanings, SDF, and sealants. For more on these preventive treatments, review
this comparison document
on fluoride varnish, SDF, and sealants.
Tier 5
provides a range of in-school preventive and restorative dental services; it is essentially a dental office in a school.
Download a list of
tiers and services
. Get a more
detailed version of tiers and services.
Provider & School Enrollment
Participating Providers & Schools
Parents & Guardians
Get involved with 802 Smiles
802 Smiles Network Mission:
To bring together students, school nurses and staff, communities, and health care providers to support access to care and the best possible oral health for all Vermont children.
802 Smiles Network Vision:
All children in Vermont schools will have the best possible oral health.
Members receive startup supplies, training, and technical support to implement school-based dental programs at whatever tier that works for them. Members commit to providing the Vermont Department of Health's Office of Oral Health with data regarding their program.
Are you an educator or school or daycare professional?
Contact us to learn more about joining the 802 Smiles Network
Are you a dental health care professional looking to work with the 802 Smiles Network?
Contact us to learn about opportunities
Do you want to help promote the 802 Smiles Network?
Download files to add a web badge to your website, email signature or social media accounts
Resources for Participating 802 Smiles Programs
Thanks for being a part of this important initiative. The following resources are what your program will need to start or continue your 802 Smiles program.
Tiers 1 and 2
Parent & Guardian Packet
Consent for Tiers 1 and 2 in multiple languages, below. It is mandatory that these forms be filled out by parents or guardians for students to receive care.
Consent Form for Tiers 1 and 2
in
العربية  (Arabic)
|
Bosanski (Bosnian
)
|
မြန်မာစာ (Burmese)
|
简体字 (Chinese - Simplified)
|
دری (Dari)
|
English
|
Farsi
|
Français (French)
|
Kirundi (Ikirundi)
|
Maay Maay
|
नेपाली (Nepali)
|
پښتو (Pashto)
|
português (Portuguese)
|
Soomaali (Somali)
|
Español (Spanish)
|
Kiswahili (Swahili)
|
Telugu (తెలుగు)
|
Thai (ภาษาไทย)
|
Tiếng Việt (Vietnamese)
How to fill the 802 Smiles Consent Form:
This short video explains each section of the consent form and the steps to complete it.
Template for
Letter from the School Principal to Parents/Guardians:
This letter welcomes parents and guardians to 802 Smiles while explaining its tiers and benefits. The template can be customized to fit each school’s leadership and services offered.
Comparison Document on Fluoride Varnish, SDF & Sealants
(optional): This PDF explains the difference between the various procedures and how they related to the 802 Smiles Network programs.
Guidance Documents
[NEW] Guidance for Tier 1 & 2 Programs
Screening and Calibration Guidelines
Best Practices in Dental Infection Prevention and Control:
From the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC); these guidelines are applicable wherever dental care is provided.
Tiers 3 and 4
Parent & Guardian Packet
Consent for Tier 3 in multiple languages, below. It is mandatory that these forms be filled out by parents or guardians for students to receive care.
Consent Form for Tier 3
in
العربية  (Arabic)
|
Bosanski (Bosnian)
|
မြန်မာစာ (Burmese)
|
简体字 (Chinese - Simplified)
|
دری (Dari)
|
English
|
Farsi
|
Français (French)
|
Kirundi (Ikirundi)
|
Maay Maay
|
नेपाली (Nepali)
|
پښتو (Pashto)
|
português (Portuguese)
|
Soomaali (Somali)
|
Español (Spanish)
|
Kiswahili (Swahili)
|
Telugu (తెలుగు)
|
Thai (ภาษาไทย)
|
Tiếng Việt (Vietnamese)
Consent for Tier 4 in multiple languages, below. It is mandatory that these forms be filled out by parents or guardians for students to receive care.
Consent Form for (Tier 4
) in
العربية  (Arabic)
|
Bosanski (Bosnian)
|
မြန်မာစာ (Burmese)
|
简体字 (Chinese - Simplified)
|
دری (Dari)
|
English
|
Farsi
|
Français (French)
|
Kirundi (Ikirundi)
|
Maay Maay
|
नेपाली (Nepali)
|
پښتو (Pashto)
|
português (Portuguese)
|
Soomaali (Somali)
|
Español (Spanish)
|
Kiswahili (Swahili)
|
Telugu (తెలుగు)
|
Thai (ภาษาไทย)
|
Tiếng Việt (Vietnamese)
Silver Diamine Fluoride (SDF) Consent Form:
Use this form when getting SDF consent from parents or guardians.
Silver Diamine Fluoride (SDF) Consent Form
in
العربية  (Arabic)
|
Bosanski (Bosnian)
|
မြန်မာစာ (Burmese)
|
简体字 (Chinese - Simplified)
|
دری (Dari)
|
English
|
Farsi
|
Français (French)
|
Kirundi (Ikirundi)
|
Maay Maay
|
नेपाली (Nepali)
|
پښتو (Pashto)
|
português (Portuguese)
|
Soomaali (Somali)
|
Español (Spanish)
|
Kiswahili (Swahili)
|
Telugu (తెలుగు)
|
Thai (ภาษาไทย)
|
Tiếng Việt (Vietnamese)
How to fill the 802 Smiles Consent Form:
This short video explains each section of the consent form and the steps to complete it.
Template for
Letter from the School Principal to Parents/Guardians
:
This letter welcomes parents and guardians to 802 Smiles while explaining its tiers and benefits. The template can be customized to fit each school’s leadership and services offered.
[NEW] Silver Diamine Fluoride Factsheet:
Learn more about SDF (Silver Diamine Fluoride) and when to use it. Document in
العربیة (Arabic)
|
नेपाली (Nepali)
|
Español (Spanish)
.
Comparison Document on Fluoride Varnish, SDF & Sealants
: This PDF explains the difference between the various procedures and how they related to the 802 Smiles Network programs.
Guidance Documents
[NEW] Guidance for Tier 3 & 4 Programs
Screening and Calibration Guidelines
Best Practices in Dental Infection Prevention and Control:
From the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC); these guidelines are applicable wherever dental care is provided.
Tier 5
Tier 5 programs function as full dental offices and, as such, have their own consent forms and additional documentation requirements. You may utilize any relevant resources available on this webpage, such as the template letter from the school principal to guardians, the SDF consent form and fact sheet, among others.
Medicaid billing and insurance information
Dental hygienists in Vermont can enroll as Medicaid providers if they wish to bill independently for the services they provide. View the
VT Medicaid Dental Fee Schedule
- to see the current reimbursement fees, enter the appropriate Procedure Code (e.g., D1351 for Sealant). See the
Dental Supplement
for dental procedure codes and additional information.
Webinar:
VT Medicaid Application Walkthrough for Independently Billing Dental Hygienists
- November 2023
Answers to questions on
Medicaid billing or enrollment
from qualified representatives.
It is strongly recommended that all 802 Smiles Network dental providers carry professional liability insurance. Medicaid providers are
required
to carry liability insurance. The American Dental Hygienists’ Association provides
information and discounts
on professional liability insurance plans for members.
Training and continuing education
Webinar on updated strategies to prevent and arrest dental decay through
minimally invasive treatments
such as SDF and glass ionomer-based materials.
Dental Sealants in the COVID-19 World
, pre-recorded by NNOHA (National Network for Oral Health Access), this video presents the rationale for continuing to place sealants while producing minimal aerosols. Download the accompanying slides
here
.
CDC's training,
Foundations: Building the Safest Dental Visit
, is free of charge and offers 3 CE credits.
This
Infection Prevention & Control Guide for School Sealant Programs
is offered by the Association for Dental Safety (formerly Organization for Safety, Asepsis and Prevention).
Earn free CEs from these courses on Silver Diamine Fluoride (SDF) and other topics relevant to your work. Offered by
Elevate Oral Care
.
Check out this
Oral Health Services for Children and Adolescents with Special Health Care Needs
booklet by the National Maternal and Child Oral Health Resource Center
Cultural Competency & Sensitivity
for Oral Health Professionals training, from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, grants 6 CE credits and is free of charge.
802 Smiles 2022 Annual Meeting presentations: the
latest on dental caries
,
802 Smiles 2021-2022 data
, and
updates on dental sealants
.
Glass Ionomer Sealants Refresher Training
- October 2023. NOTE: This training has been approved by the Vermont Board of Dental Examiners for 3 CE credits. To be eligible for credits, you must: (1) watch the recording, (2) take
this short survey
, and (3) attend a short hands-on training (the survey will provide you with more details).
Infection Prevention and Control Refresher Training
- February 2024.  It is strongly recommended that dental health care providers familiarize themselves with the latest guidance from the CDC and ADS (formerly OSAP), which can be accessed through the links in the
IPC presentation slides
.
Funding opportunities for programs and providers
Some Supervisory Districts/Unions fund 802 Smiles programs in their schools; check with your local SD/SU to see if this is a possibility.
The
American Dental Hygienists’ Association
has several funding opportunities available.
As a Community Champion of the 802 Smiles Network, the
Stratton Community Foundation
provides funding for hundreds of children in southern Vermont to have access to Tier 4 services.
Additional guidelines, laws and regulations for all Tiers
General Supervision Form
:
A PDF form to print and use. This form is
required
by the Vermont Board of Dental Examiners for RDHs working in public health settings under General Supervision.
Report on Dental Findings:
802 Smiles RDHs should fill this form each time they provide services to a student. Copies of the filled form should be shared with parents/guardians and with the student's dental home (if they have one on file), ideally on the same day the services were rendered. This is a
requirement
of the Vermont Board of Dental Examiners.
DCF’s Mandated Reporting website:
This website includes the
required
Mandated Reporter Training.
VT Administrative Rules from the Vermont Board of Dental Examiners:
These rules are
in effect through 10/14/2025
.
New Administrative Rules
will be in effect on 10/15/2025.
VT Dentistry-Related Laws and Statutes:
Check out laws and statutes related to dental health care providers in Vermont.
HIPAA/FERPA:
This joint guidance, from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services & the Department of Education, contains important information regarding the sharing of information, privacy and more.
Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) one-pager for 802 Smile
s: a summary of best practices in IPC, with links to resources.
Information for Parents and Guardians
Get family-friendly tips to keep your smiles bright at home
.
How to fill the 802 Smiles Consent Form
: This short video explains each section of the consent form and the steps to complete it.
Comparison Document on Fluoride Varnish, SDF & Sealants
: This document explains the difference between these treatments and how they relate to 802 Smiles programs.
Video about SDF from PBS NewsHour
: This 8-minute video from PBS discusses the benefits of using Silver Diamine Fluoride (SDF) for tooth decay, compared to invasive drilling procedures.
Dental Health Guide
and
My Dental Health Passport
: Created by the
Inclusive Health Partnership Project
, these resources help people with intellectual and developmental disabilities communicate more easily with their dental care providers.
Map Showing 802 Smiles Program Locations in Vermont
Contact Us
Topics:
Chronic Disease
|
Dental Health
|
Fluoride
|
Oral Health
|
Resources for Dentists
|
Resources for Nurses
|
School Health
Last Updated:
April 10, 2026