Dentists have slammed the plan to increase NHS dental charges in England on 14 December – a hike that was postponed from 1 April during the first wave of the pandemic.

The five per cent increase is viewed by the British Dental Association (BDA) as another barrier to care for thousands of patients.

The changes include:

  • A routine check-up to increase by £1.10 from £22.70 to £23.80
  • Treatments such as root canals or removing teeth will rise by £3.10 from £62.10 to £65.20
  • More complex procedures like crowns, dentures and bridges rise from by £13.50 from £269.30 to £282.80.

The BDA estimate more than 19 million appointments have been delayed since lockdown.

The BDA has long warned that costs are a major barrier to patients, even among those who are entitled to free care. Analysis of data from the government’s GP Survey indicates over 700,000 people had avoided seeking NHS treatment for reason of cost. The Adult Oral Health Survey has found that for 26% of the public cost had influenced the type of dental treatment they had opted to have and 19% had delayed dental treatment due to cost.

Dentist leaders have accused Ministers of using inflation-busting increases to try and plug the hole in the service’s shrinking budget. Since lockdown the Treasury has lost nearly £400 million from the charges that are increasingly relied upon to fund services in England, with around £50m in revenues now being lost per month.

The BDA has already called on government to provide capital funding for ventilation equipment that could enable practices to massively expand access, by reducing the gaps dentists are mandated to keep between treatments, which remain the number one barrier to capacity.

Dentists are health professionals not tax collectors

The BDA estimate any investment would pay for itself by helping restore patient numbers closer to pre-COVID levels.

Dave Cottam, Chair of the British Dental Association’s General Dental Practice said: 'Slapping higher charges on patients struggling to secure care in the middle of a pandemic is utterly wrongheaded. This inflation-busting hike won’t put an extra penny into a service in crisis, or help millions currently unable to get an appointment.

'We’ve appealed to government for support to bring down the backlogs. Sadly this short-sighted approach will only give lower income, higher risk patients more reasons not to attend.

'Dentists are health professionals not tax collectors. These charges have ceased to be a ‘contribution’ and are now simply a substitute for decent state investment.”'

Author: