The Commission on Dental Competency Assessments (formerly the North East Regional Board of Dental Examiners) is one of two examination agencies for dentists, dental hygienists and dental therapists in the United States. [1] These were organized to better standardize clinical exams for licensure. Historically each state had its own independent licensing exam.
On January 9, 2015, the NERB became the Commission on Dental Competency Assessments (CDCA). [2]
August 3, 2021, CDCA, merged with WREB, the Western Regional Examining Board, creating CDCA-WREB. Then, on August 1, 2022, CDCA-WREB merged with The Council on Interstate Testing Agencies.
Now CDCA-WREB-CITA, the organization, administers the ADEX Dental and Dental Hygiene Exams. ADEX exams are administered and portable across the United States and beyond. [3] The agency also administers the Florida Laws and Rules exam, [4] and an Expanded Function Dental Assistant (EFDA) exam Sedation, Local Anesthesia, Dental Therapy and Nitrous Oxide examinations.
CDCA-WREB-CITA has grown to include 47* states, Washington, DC, Puerto Rico, US Virgin Islands and Jamaica. The only states that still do not accept the ADEX exams for both Dental and Hygiene exams are: Delaware, Georgia, *Nebraska (accepts Dental but not Hygiene), *New York (accepts Hygiene but not Dental).
| U.S. State or Other Country | Accepts ADEX Dental Exam | Accepts ADEX Hygiene Exam |
|---|---|---|
| ALABAMA | Y | Y |
| ALASKA | Y | Y |
| ARIZONA | Y | Y |
| ARKANSAS | Y | Y |
| CALIFORNIA | Y | Y |
| COLORADO | Y | Y |
| CONNECTICUT | Y | Y |
| DC | Y | Y |
| DELAWARE | N | N |
| FLORIDA | Y | Y |
| GEORGIA | Y | Y |
| HAWAII | Y | Y |
| IDAHO | Y | Y |
| ILLINOIS | Y | Y |
| INDIANA | Y | Y |
| IOWA | Y | Y |
| JAMAICA | Y | - |
| KANSAS | Y | Y |
| KENTUCKY | Y | Y |
| LOUISIANA | Y | Y |
| MAINE | Y | Y |
| MARYLAND | Y | Y |
| MASSACHUSETTS | Y | Y |
| MICHIGAN | Y | Y |
| MINNESOTA | Y | Y |
| MISSISSIPPI | Y | Y |
| MISSOURI | Y | Y |
| MONTANA | Y | Y |
| NORTH CAROLINA | Y | Y |
| NEBRASKA | Y | N |
| NEVADA | Y | Y |
| NEW JERSEY | Y | Y |
| NEW MEXICO | Y | Y |
| NEW YORK | N | Y |
| NEW HAMPSHIRE | Y | Y |
| NORTH DAKOTA | Y | Y |
| OHIO | Y | Y |
| OKLAHOMA | Y | Y |
| OREGON | Y | Y |
| PENNSYLVANIA | Y | Y |
| PUERTO RICO | Y | - |
| RHODE ISLAND | Y | Y |
| SOUTH CAROLINA | Y | Y |
| SOUTH DAKOTA | Y | Y |
| TENNESSEE | Y | Y |
| TEXAS | Y | Y |
| UTAH | Y | Y |
| VERMONT | Y | Y |
| VIRGINIA | Y | Y |
| U.S. VIRGIN ISLANDS | Y | - |
| WASHINGTON | Y | Y |
| WEST VIRGINIA | Y | Y |
| WISCONSIN | Y | Y |
| WYOMING | Y | Y |