LONDON, UK: The British Dental Association (BDA) and Oral Health Foundation have both come out strongly against the UK government’s recent decision to increase dental charges by more than the rate of inflation. From 1 April 2019, a routine check-up will cost £22.70 instead of £21.60, an increase of just over 5 per cent.
“The cost of visiting an NHS dentist is increasing far beyond that of inflation. We have seen these price rises develop over many years and we fear it will soon push many of the population to breaking point,” said Dr Nigel Carter, OBE, Chairman of the Platform for Better Oral Health in Europe and Chief Executive of the Oral Health Foundation.
“A significant U-turn needs to happen to make NHS dentistry more affordable. It is clear, however, that the government continues to see it as a cash cow to prop up other areas of the health service,” he continued.
Dr Henrik Overgaard-Nielsen, Chair of the General Dental Practice Committee of the BDA, concurred. “Despite pledges of record NHS investment, our patients are being singled out to pay more, just so ministers can pay less,” he said.
“Dentists share the government’s commitment to prevention, but we cannot make progress when low-income, high-needs patients keep being offered reasons not to attend,” added Nielsen.
Since 2010, net government expenditure on dental services in England has dropped by £550 million in real terms, while the cost of NHS dentistry has increased by more than 30 per cent. In addition, a 2018 study published in the British Journal of General Practice found that there are approximately 380,000 patients every year who head to a general medical practitioner for a dental consultation. These consultations are free, but many general medical practitioners are unequipped to provide dental treatment.
Tags:
LONDON, UK: From April on, patients visiting an NHS dentist will have to pay more for their treatment. According to the government, charges for all types of...
LONDON, UK: Friday’s announcement by the Department of Health that NHS dental fees will be increased in the upcoming and the following year has ...
LONDON, UK: Though practices in the UK remain open as the country goes through its second lockdown of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, dentists appear to be facing ...
LONDON, UK: The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) recently announced plans to provide the Secretary of State with the power to suspend a ...
RUGBY, UK: In marking World Cancer Day, the British Dental Health Foundation (BDHF) has highlighted the constantly increasing rates of oral cancer in the ...
LONDON, UK: Local newspapers are reporting that a dental student from Plymouth will have to stand trial for terrorist offences in London next month. The ...
STIRLING, Scotland: Freedom of information requests by the Scottish Liberal Democrats have highlighted the extremely long waiting times for oral surgery ...
LONDON – The results of a recently published online survey indicate that more dental professionals practising in the UK are optimistic rather than ...
LONDON, UK: Dentists may sometimes encounter patients who are agitated during a dental appointment and who become violent or aggressive. The Dental Defence ...
LONDON, UK: The General Dental Council (GDC) has recently announced that the number of dentists on the UK register remained stable after the annual renewal ...
Live webinar
Fri. 19 July 2024
1:00 am UTC (London)
Live webinar
Tue. 6 August 2024
11:00 pm UTC (London)
Live webinar
Wed. 14 August 2024
12:00 am UTC (London)
Live webinar
Wed. 14 August 2024
5:30 pm UTC (London)
Live webinar
Wed. 21 August 2024
2:00 pm UTC (London)
Dr. Jim Lai DMD, MSc(Perio), EdD, FRCD(C)
Live webinar
Thu. 29 August 2024
1:00 am UTC (London)
Live webinar
Mon. 2 September 2024
10:00 am UTC (London)