Sunday, February 25, 2007

WHO highlights importance of oral health

For the first time since 1981, oral health was on the agenda at the recent World Health Organization’s (WHO) Executive Board Meeting in Geneva.

The WHO’s Global Oral Health Programme prepared an extensive report on “Oral health: action plan for promotion and integrated disease prevention”.

The Executive Board has also made a number of major recommendations to the next World Health Assembly, due to be held in May 2007.

Friday, February 23, 2007

New waiting list data

The Department of Human Services has updated waiting time information for public dental clinics on the Your Hospitals website.
VOHA will be updating its information about these waiting times, as at September 2006, and new rural and metropolitan summary tables will be available on the VOHA website soon

Wednesday, February 14, 2007

HSU highlights dental funding issue

The Health Services Union, yesterday launched a campaign urging the major parties to provide Medicare rebates for dentistry for those aged over 65, under 18, and on a pension.
According to The Age, "the union's national secretary, Craig Thomson, said that the union believed in universal dental cover but it had limited its proposal to the elderly and young in recognition of the huge cost involved".
The Age reported that union polling shows "50 per cent of people had postponed a visit to the dentist because they could not afford it, and 15 per cent had delayed taking their children to the dentist".
The poll also indicated that 73 per cent of respondents would be more likely to support a political party if it offered rebates for basic dentistry. The same percentage said they disagreed with Canberra's argument that dental services were a state responsibility.

Government MPs call for dental funding

According to a story in The Age today, Government backbenchers are supporting the reintroduction of federal funding for public dental services.
"Worried that the Coalition will be punished at the polls over a blow-out in dental waiting lists, several backbenchers have urged the Prime Minister to reintroduce Commonwealth funding. The Government dumped the Commonwealth dental scheme 10 years ago."

The Age story notes that "There are an estimated 650,000 people on public dental waiting lists — and increasing media attention on those affected, with stories such as elderly people pulling out their teeth with pliers."

Liberal backbencher Dr Andrew Laming is reported to have told a Coalition meeting yesterday that "while dental services were technically a state responsibility, access was now so bad that the Federal Government would not escape the electorate's anger about the situation".

Liberal Party sources have advised that it could cost more than $1 billion to clear public dental waiting lists across Australia.

The Age suggests that Mr Laming's proposal was broadly supported by several colleagues, including Liberal senator Guy Barnett, Nationals MP Paul Neville and Liberal MP Danna Vale.

Tuesday, February 13, 2007

States and Territories call for Commonwealth dental action

The Council for the Australian Federation held its second meeting in Sydney on 9 February. The Council was established in October 2006 and comprises the Premiers and Chief Ministers of the States and Territories. The Council desccribes itself as "both a strategic body that will help shape and set the national policy agenda, and a forum for joint State and Territory action".
The Communique issued by the Council on 9 February included the following statement on dental health, which calls on the Commonwealth to play a more active role in contributing to funding of public dental services:
"The public dental system plays a critical role in providing general dental and denture care, as well as emergency care, for many children and adults with a health care or pensioner card. State Governments have progressively increased investment in public dental services, which has led to some significant improvements in service provision but a combined Commonwealth-State effort is required.

In 1996 the Commonwealth abolished the Commonwealth Dental Health Program. The scheme supported the State run public dental services, with funding of $100 million in 1995/96. A review by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare found the program enabled 200,000 extra people to access dental care per annum, shortened waiting times and reduced the need for teeth extraction.

The Commonwealth’s inclusion of limited dental care in Medicare rebates for treatment of chronic conditions has failed to make a significant impact on the need for dental care. Equally, the Commonwealth’s private health insurance rebate does not assist access to dental care for the many Australians who do not have and cannot afford private health insurance. While private dentists do have an important role to play in the provision of care to low income Australians, even with relatively generous incentives, they will not be able to service all the need in the community.

Commonwealth support of dental training is also required. A substantial increase in training places and an improved distribution of these places would make a significant difference to access to care and the population’s oral health The recent House of Representatives report, ‘The Blame Game’, asserted that access to public dental services is a joint responsibility of the Commonwealth and State Governments. This report recommends that the Commonwealth supplement State funding for public dental services.

The Council agrees to call on the Commonwealth to:
  • reinstate funding for public dental services to increase access to dental care, to be provided in partnership with State and Territory delivery systems;
  • extend and simplify the Medicare Enhanced Primary Care system to:
    - more effectively provide a broader range of dental care to people with chronic and debilitating conditions;
    - attract more dentists from private practice to participate, and make the scheme easier for patients, by relaxing current limitations; and
    - fund treatment for people through public dental hospital care
    ."

Friday, February 09, 2007

Health Ministers call for national dental scheme

Health Ministers from all States and Territories are meeting today to develop a united approach to issues such as fairer hospital funding and public dental services.

In her role as host of this summit, Victorian Health Minister Bronwyn Pike has issued a media release which reveals that "a key priority area is the need for a national dental scheme". (A link will be provided when it becomes available).

She also notes that "Each year 200,000 more people would get dental care if the Federal Government resumed their funding levels from ten years ago".