BOISE, Idaho — Idaho House Bill 123, introduced last week by Republican Representative Jeff Ehlers, would have delicensed denturists in Idaho — which experts in the field say would shutter the profession in the state.
"I would probably have to move to another state in order to continue practicing," said Amanda Rowe Bronson, president of the Idaho Denturist Association, on Monday morning.
After hearing her concerns, Idaho News 6 called Representative Ehlers, who immediately told us he is no longer pushing the legislation forward.
He has decided to pull the bill after hearing similar concerns, which he said were unintended.
Ehlers says he aimed to increase competition for denturists in the state, rather than make it harder for them to practice.
“The profession is still small and vulnerable. If a representative that has a certain agenda decides to make a bill, we can be quickly shut down,” says Rowe Bronson.
She was relieved when Idaho News 6 told her the bill would not move forward.
“Relief, automatically relief and gratitude. I’m so thankful that it is being withdrawn and that we can continue practicing — definitely something that we’re going to have to follow up with in the future still,” added Bronson.
Representative Ehlers says he plans to work with Idaho dentists and denturists to rewrite the bill in the coming months to achieve his goal of increasing competition without putting the profession at risk.
