SECTION 108.62. Awards, Honors and Recognitions

(a) A licensee may publicize the receipt of a professional award, honor, recognition, or rating in an advertisement or otherwise, if the publication is not false, misleading, or deceptive, and is subject to reasonable verification by the public. Any advertisement must comply with all laws and rules governing advertisement by licensees.

(b) The publication of an award, honor, recognition or rating must reflect truth, state the specific year or time period of receipt and clearly name the awarding organization or entity.

(1) Proper: John Doe, DDS - Included in Anytown Quarterly's Fall 2012 Top Dentists

(2) Improper: John Doe, DDS - Top Dentist

(3) Proper: John Doe, DDS - Selected as Anytown's 2012 Dentist of the Year by the Anytown

(4) Improper: John Doe, DDS - Dentist of the Year

(c) The publication must state the licensee's receipt of an award, honor, recognition or rating as inclusion or selection in a listing of other licensees, if applicable.

(1) Proper: John was selected for inclusion in 2012 Anytown Yearly's Super Dentists List

(2) Improper: John is an Anytown Super Dentist

(d) The publication may include the trademark or logo of the award, honor, recognition or rating, so long as the advertisement conforms to all laws and rules governing advertisement by licensees.

(e) The publication of an award, honor, recognition or rating is false, misleading or deceptive if the licensee compensated a third party for the inclusion of the licensee's name in the survey, ballot, or poll that determined the recipients of the award, honor, recognition or rating. This does not preclude licensees from purchasing advertisements to communicate the receipt of an award, honor, recognition or rating.

(f) The publication of an award, honor, recognition or rating is false, misleading or deceptive if the publication imputes an individual licensee's selection or inclusion to an entire practice, clinic or office. An advertisement for an entire dental practice, clinic or office at which more than one licensee engages in the practice of dentistry, must clearly denote the specific licensees within in the practice who received the award, honor, recognition or rating.

Source Note: The provisions of this §108.62 adopted to be effective May 1, 2013, 37 TexReg 9637