Stephen Duckett, the author of a new report from the Grattan Institute “Filling the gap: A universal dental care scheme for Australia” (Report) is calling for universal dental coverage in Australia.
The Report discusses that in Australia, most dental care is provided by the private sector and funded out of patients' own pockets.Of all spending on dental care in 2016-17, individual Australians forked out 58 per cent in out-of-pocket costs.
About a third of the Australian population is eligible for public dental services, but it is estimated there is only capacity to provide oral healthcare for about 20 per cent of those who are eligible. As a result, more than two million Australians delay or avoid going to the dentist each year because of the cost, and hundreds of thousands of Australians remain on public waiting lists for well over a year.
The Report concludes that the “existing public dental schemes are inadequate, uncoordinated, and inequitable across states”, and it proposes that the Federal Government should take responsibility for funding primary dental care in the same way in which it funds primary medical care.
The Victorian Oral Health has stated in its media release (Media Release) that an alliance of dental health professionals, providers and consumers has welcomed the Report as a significant contribution to addressing one of the most in equitable and under-funded areas of healthcare in the country.
Read the report here, and read the Media Release here.