Labor overlooks oral health

The announcement yesterday by Premier Steve Bracks of $1.4 billion for rebuilt hospitals and $44 million to tackle outpatient waiting times, makes no mention of measures to address dental service problems still affecting many public dental patients - especially in rural areas.

While dental waiting lists have been reduced somewhat over the last couple of years, they remain unacceptably long in many parts of the State, with patients waiting up to five years in some rural centres.

Waiting times at all public dental agencies are shown at the VOHA website .

The unlucky 13 rural clinics with the longest waiting times as at June 2006 are:
Moe - 65 months
Churchill - 65 months
Sale - 60 months
Warrnambool - 55 months
Portland - 52 months
Ballarat - 47 months
Orbost - 46 months
Wangaratta - 44 months
Echuca - 41 months
Horsham - 40 months
Bendigo - 37 months
Bairnsdale - 36 months
Colac - 35 months

If the ALP intends to increase funding for dental services so that these continuing waiting list problems are addressed, it hasn't yet put a figure on that commitment.