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ADA Schedule and Glossary Q&A #9: Orthodontics, general services, misc.

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Australian Dental Association
Australian Dental Association
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30 December 2025
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4 minute read
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  • Resources

To address uncertainties about choosing the best item that describes treatment outcomes, the ADA’s Schedule and Third-Party Committee is releasing a series of FAQs about the Schedule. This article focuses on orthodontics, general services and miscellaneous.

Dental practitioners often encounter uncertainties when choosing an item number that best describes their treatment outcomes. Using the most appropriate number from the ADA’s The Australian Schedule of Dental Services and Glossary can be difficult, especially if you’re unfamiliar with the procedure, or you don’t do the treatment very often.

To help address these challenges, the ADA’s Schedule and Third-Party Committee is releasing a series of FAQs about the Schedule which bring together some of the most commonly asked questions, providing clear guidance to support your accuracy, compliance and confidence when navigating item numbers. The Committee regularly responds to member questions and clarifies how item numbers should be understood and used in day-to-day practice. 

ORTHODONTICS

811 Passive removable appliance – per arch

Q: I would like assistance in clarification of item numbers to use for Invisalign.

A: When using any sequential plastic aligners system, during the treatment-planning stage and while assessing the suitability for treatment, the following items could be used: 

Item 014 Consultation or 015 Consultation – extended (30 minutes or more)

Item 072 Photographic records – intraoral – per appointment 

Item 073 Photographic records – extraoral – per appointment

Item 075 Diagnostic modelling – digital – per tooth. Please note that this item can only be used if a digital simulation of the proposed treatment is undertaken, and as it is per tooth, can only be used for each single instance of a tooth movement that is modelled. If only 14 teeth are modelled as being orthodontically moved, the itemisation would be 075 x 14; if full arches of 2 x 16 teeth are modelled, 075 x 32.

Once the patient commits and treatment is commenced: Item 825 (x2) Sequential plastic aligners – per arch 

Once completed:

Item 072 Photographic records – intraoral – per appointment 

Item 073 Photographic records – extraoral – per appointment

Item 811 (x2) Passive removable appliance – per arch and/or item 845 Passive appliance – fixed

Please keep in mind that each item number must be clinically relevant.

GENERAL SERVICES

Drug Therapy

927 Provision of medication/medicament

Q: If I issue a prescription for antibiotics, can I use item 927? 
A: No, there is no item number for writing a prescription for antibiotics. 
Q: If I provide a high-fluoride toothpaste such as Neutrafluor 5000®, can I use item 927?
A: In your example, Neutrafluor 5000® is a Schedule 3 medication (also called ‘substances’ or ‘poisons’ in different states of Australia, with the TGA referring to them as a Pharmacist Only Medicine) and providing them in a dental practice requires you to observe the conditions imposed by the various state jurisdictions. The answer to this question is complex: In Victoria, (as an example) the following conditions apply:  
‘A health practitioner who supplies a Schedule 3 poison must: 
• personally deliver or personally supervise its delivery to the person; and  
• provide directions for the use of the Schedule 3 poison; and 
• place a label on the container which uniquely identifies the supplier’ 
If you were to observe these conditions, item 927 is appropriate.  
On the other hand, if one of your patients purchased a tube of the toothpaste ‘over the counter’ at your practice, from your receptionist or even your dental assistant, you could not itemise the purchase as 927. Please note that the package that contains the toothpaste requires a label that complies with the legislation referred to above. You can find templates for S3 labels in the resource section of the ADA Website.
Q: Is there an item number I can use when giving a patient a tube of the GC Tooth Mousse®; how often could it be invoiced?
A: You can use 927. The full description is: 927 Provision of medication/medicament
The supply, or administration under professional supervision, of appropriate medications and medicaments required for dental treatments. Therefore, Tooth Mousse® can only be itemised by 927 when delivered by the practitioner as part of a consultation.  There is no limit to the number of times that a patient can be invoiced for item 927, provided that they have a consultation as described above. If delivered over the counter, it is considered a retail sale and no item number is available for use. 

929 Provision of neuromandibular therapy

Q: What is the most appropriate item number to describe the administration of therapeutic Botox?
A: 929 Provision of neuromodulator therapy. Please refer to page 79 of the 13th Schedule.

MISCELLANEOUS 

981 Splinting and stabilisation – direct – per tooth

Q: How can I itemise a composite resin temporary bridge (splinting periodontally-compromised teeth, including a composite pontic)? 
 
A: Item 981 Splinting and stabilisation – direct – per tooth The joining of adjacent teeth to provide mutual support (where not covered by item 386 or 387) is appropriate to describe 2 teeth being splinted together; additional splinted teeth are described using additional instances of 981. A pontic can be described either as 632 Provisional bridge pontic – per pontic, or, 642 Bridge pontic – direct – per pontic, or, 643 Bridge pontic – indirect – per pontic.