Dentists decry being left in the dark about federal dental insurance plan
Global News
Canadian dental associations say they want more details about Ottawa's plan to provide dental insurance while preserving existing private and public care.
Canadian dentists are demanding details on Ottawa’s soon-to-be announced federal dental insurance plan and how the federal government plans to preserve existing provincial and private coverage.
Eleven provincial and territorial dental associations have written a joint letter to the federal health minister to express serious concerns about a lack of information when it comes to critical aspects of the new plan.
“We have no indication that we are being heard,” the dental associations said in their letter, which was also sent to all members of Parliament this week.
They wrote that they worry the success of the new plan is being compromised “by a lack of meaningful consultation with the dentists we represent — those who will be expected to deliver on the government’s promises.”
The plan was born out of the Liberals’ supply-and-confidence deal with the NDP last year, which calls for federal dental care coverage for middle- and low-income families.
The new insurance program is expected to be announced before the end of the year, though claims may not be accepted until 2024.
The spring budget promised $13 billion over the next five years to implement the national dental-care plan, which the federal government says will insure up to nine million people.
The government plans to begin with coverage for uninsured people under the age of 18, seniors, and people with disabilities under a $90,000 annual family income threshold.
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