New online lobbying facility

Victorians concerned about the long waiting lists for dental treatment can now express their views to politicians using a new website - www.voha.org

The Victorian Oral Health Alliance has given them a dedicated website so they can help the parties contesting the Victorian State election to recognise the need for additional dental health policy measures.

Launched today, the advocacy site highlights oral health problems facing Victorians: public dental waiting times up to five years; elderly, Aboriginal and other people missing out on dental care; and lack of oral disease prevention programs for many Victorians, including unfluoridated water for about 20% of the population, mainly in rural areas.

The site includes an ideal dental health policy platform which has been recommended to the parties contesting the Victorian election in November 2006. It also enables people to locate their nearest public dental clinic, check waiting times, and send email or fax messages to their local MP, their local election candidates or Health Minister Bronwyn Pike asking them to take action to address

• the urgent need for more timely oral health care for public dental patients
• the need to address dental workforce shortages in Victoria, especially in rural areas
• the provision of a high profile oral disease prevention campaign using the popular media.