Ben Burris Drops Lawsuit, Will Surrender Orthodontic License

Ben Burris

Dr. Ben Burris of Fayetteville said Friday that he is relinquishing his orthodontic license to grow his general dentistry practice, and he’s ended his 18-month-old court case against the state.

Burris, who will remain a licensed dentist, said in a news release that he told Arkansas Dental Board Friday that he was giving up his specialist license. He said the move will allow him to offer general dentistry services at his Arkansas clinics, in addition to the orthodontics services he’s always done.

“In essence, nothing changes,” Burris said. “I’m still the same guy, with the same qualifications, that I was yesterday. But Arkansas has forced me to make a ridiculous choice about what to call myself. I have chosen to put the needs of Arkansans above my own right to call myself what I am—a trained orthodontist.”

Burris owns Arkansas Dentistry & Braces, a chain of 20 orthodontic practices throughout Arkansas. He has wanted to provide a teeth-cleaning service to patients, but can’t because doing so would violate the Arkansas Dental Practice Act. 

The act says that orthodontists or other dental specialists can’t provide any services outside their specialization, even though they are licensed dentists and have received the same training as dentists. 

An orthodontist cannot practice general dentistry but a general dentist can practice orthodontics without any additional training or licensures, according to executive director of the Arkansas State Board of Dental Examiners Donna Cobb.

Burris filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Little Rock in May 2014 against the Arkansas Board of Dental Examiners, challenging the act. The board asked U.S. District Judge Brian Miller to dismiss the case, which he did in November. But in December, the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in St. Louis ruled in favor of Burris, who appealed the dismissal, and sent the case back to the lower court.

But Burris said Friday that he’s voluntarily dismissed the lawsuit against the board. Still, he said he will continue working to change the Dental Practice Act in the Arkansas Legislature.

“Voluntarily dismissing this lawsuit will allow Dr. Burris to focus on two things: serving people in need and working to change a bad law in the Legislature,” said Matt Miller, a senior attorney with the Institute for Justice, which represented Burris in his court case. “While we believe Dr. Burris had very strong constitutional claims and his case was making headway in the court, he simply could not wait any longer to continue his mission of making sure that everyone can afford basic dental care.”

Burris’ case came amid a number of occupational licensing challenges across the country.

“In general, … courts are finding that these rules and regulations and laws … are not narrowly tailored, not in the compelling government interest and are being changed either legislatively or thrown out,” another Burris attorney, Chris Burks of Little Rock, told Arkansas Business last year. “Courts are treating this right to work as kind of a constitutional right.”

Burris’ case started in 2013 when he began offering low-cost teeth cleanings at his orthodontic offices. He first started the service in his Jonesboro location and then expanded it to four other offices in northeast Arkansas.

The cleanings were performed by dental hygienists under Burris’ supervision and other orthodontists who worked for him. He charged $99 for adults and $69 for children, which was at least $100 lower than the standard price of a cleaning without insurance, Burris said. The patient would be referred to a primary care dentist if further treatment was needed.

But when the dental board received complaints that Burris was offering the teeth-cleaning service, it threatened to revoke his dental and orthodontic licenses if he continued.

Burris had performed about 200 teeth cleanings when he voluntarily suspended the practice.