<br><div><aside class="gnt_em gnt_em__fp gnt_em_vp__tp gnt_em__el" aria-label="Video - How the new RNA technology is used to create the COVID-19 vaccines"/><p class="gnt_ar_b_p">Like other dentists, A.J. Acierno is experienced in <a target="_blank" href="/story/money/2018/12/21/invisalign-smile-direct-club-braces-teeth-aligners/2378959002/" rel="noopener" data-t-l="|inline|intext|n/a" class="gnt_ar_b_a">complex medical procedures</a> and comfortable with oral injections.</p><p class="gnt_ar_b_p">So he's more than capable of delivering basic COVID-19 shots to the upper arms of patients, he says.</p><p class="gnt_ar_b_p">And now that <a target="_blank" href="/story/news/politics/2021/03/12/covid-19-vaccine-joe-biden-expands-ways-americans-can-get-shot/4662975001/" rel="noopener" data-t-l="|inline|intext|n/a" class="gnt_ar_b_a">the Biden administration is letting dentists and dental students</a> administer vaccines, Americans may now be able to get an inoculation against the deadly virus the next time they get a tooth cleaning. </p><p class="gnt_ar_b_p">“As a dentist, I will be very happy to give a shot,” says Acierno, who is also CEO of Schaumburg Illinois-based DecisionOne Dental, <a target="_blank" href="/story/money/2020/10/19/dentists-coronavirus-pandemic-ada-cdc/3653734001/" rel="noopener" data-t-l="|inline|intext|n/a" class="gnt_ar_b_a">a group of dental practices</a> with 33 locations.</p><p class="gnt_ar_b_p">In fact, the procedure will be even easier for him than oral shots because vaccine patients won't be able to fend off needles with their tongues or by clamping their mouths shut.</p><figure class="gnt_em gnt_em_img"><img class="gnt_em_img_i" style="height:440px" data-g-r="lazy" src="https://www.gannett-cdn.com/presto/2021/03/04/NTGS/4ed6a45e-7c37-4329-b491-bec54219425d-AP20149772049529.jpg?width=660&height=440&fit=crop&format=pjpg&auto=webp" srcset="https://www.gannett-cdn.com/presto/2021/03/04/NTGS/4ed6a45e-7c37-4329-b491-bec54219425d-AP20149772049529.jpg?width=1320&height=880&fit=crop&format=pjpg&auto=webp 2x" decoding="async" alt="Americans may now be able to get an inoculation against COVID-19 the next time they get a tooth cleaning."/></figure><p class="gnt_ar_b_p">There’s a growing consensus that an all-hands-on-deck approach is the best way to vaccinate the nation as quickly as possible at a time when experts say that it’s the only way to put an end to the pandemic.</p><p class="gnt_ar_b_p">With that in mind, President Joe Biden's administration this month amended an emergency declaration under the Public Readiness and Emergency Preparedness Act to allow the nation's more than <a target="_blank" href="https://www.bls.gov/ooh/healthcare/dentists.htm" rel="noopener" data-t-l="|inline|intext|n/a" class="gnt_ar_b_a">151,000 dentists</a> to join the push to deliver shots.</p><aside aria-label="advertisement" class="gnt_m gnt_x gnt_x__lbl gnt_x__al"/><p class="gnt_ar_b_p">By comparison, the U.S. has nearly <a target="_blank" href="https://www.bls.gov/ooh/healthcare/pharmacists.htm" rel="noopener" data-t-l="|inline|intext|n/a" class="gnt_ar_b_a">322,000 pharmacists</a>, many of whom are already delivering vaccines at drug stores.</p><p class="gnt_ar_b_p">"Since Biden said ... he expects everyone to be eligible, I do think that we need a lot of different outlets for people to access...</p></div> <style> .wrapper { text-align: center; } </style> <div class="wrapper"> <a class="button" href ="https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2021/03/25/covid-vaccine-dentist-coronavirus-pandemic-biden-emergency-declaration/4668608001/">Read more <span>➤</span></a> </div>
