06/09/2020

Dear Valued Patients:

We hope this letter finds you and your family in good health. Our community and country have been through a lot over the last few months, and we are looking forward to resuming our normal habits and routines. While many things have changed, one thing has remained the same: our commitment to your safety.

Infection control has always been a top priority for our practice and you may have seen this during your visits to our office. Our infection control processes are made so that when you receive care, it’s both safe and comfortable. We want to tell you about the infection control procedures we follow in our practice to keep patients and staff safe.

Our office follows infection control recommendations made by the American Dental Association (ADA), the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). We follow the activities of these agencies so that we are up-to-date on any new rulings or guidance that may be issued.

You may see some changes when it is time for your next appointment. We made these changes to help protect our patients and staff. For example:

• Our office will communicate with you beforehand to ask some screening questions. You’ll be asked those same questions again when you are in the office and we will be taking your temperature as well. These pre-screening questions are available on our website: vernondental.com under the patient forms tab. We ask that you answer these questions online up to 2 weeks before your appointment. Your cooperation is appreciated.

• We have hand sanitizer that we will ask you to use when you enter the office. You will also find some in the reception area and other places in the office for you to use as needed.

• You may see that our waiting room will no longer offer magazines, children’s toys and so forth, since those items are difficult to clean and disinfect. At this time we are not using our waiting room. We ask that you remain in your car and call us at 973-827-5455 upon your arrival.

• Appointments will be managed to allow for social distancing between patients. That might mean that you’re offered fewer options for scheduling your appointment.

• We will do our best to allow greater time between patients to reduce waiting times for you, as well as to reduce the number of patients in the reception area at any one time.

• We will be assessing a PPE fee of 15.00 per patient, per visit as allowed by law. This charge is not covered by insurance and will be the responsibility of the patient and due at the time of your appointment.

We look forward to seeing you again and are happy to answer any questions you may have about the steps we take to keep you, and every patient, safe in our practice. To make an appointment, please call our office at 973-827-5455.

Thank you for being our patient. We value your trust and loyalty and look forward to welcoming back our patients, neighbors and friends. Stay safe and healthy!

Sincerely,

Dr. Laura A. Covucci, D.D.S.

Dr. Cecilia Garcia, D.D.S.

Dr. Darren Sacks, D.D.S.

Dr. Ecio Pozzi, D.D.S.