On Wednesday, the government is planning to announce a programme to improve access to NHS dentistry in England. As part of their “dental recovery plan,” dentists will be offered cash incentives to take on new NHS patients and will send teams to schools to treat children’s teeth. The Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC) unintentionally sent details of their plan to MPs of all parties, which was passed on to the BBC. It remains unclear if the contents of the email will match the announcement on Wednesday, but it is marked with tomorrow’s date.
The email outlines a £200m investment in dentistry, including incentives for dentists to work in under-served areas. Through a “bonus” scheme, dentists will be supported to take on new NHS patients. Up to 240 dentists in areas with the fewest practitioners will be offered a £20,000 “golden hello” to deliver NHS care for at least three years. The “smile for life” initiative will encourage children of reception age to combat dental decay from an early age through a specific programme for nurseries. Mobile dental teams will also travel to schools in so-called dental deserts, providing fluoride varnish treatments to over 165,000 children.
Labour has also announced its own policy of supervised tooth-brushing for three to five year-olds and offering incentives for new dentists to work in areas with the greatest need. Shadow health secretary Wes Streeting stated that “patients are desperately queuing around the block to see a dentist, literally pulling their own teeth out, and tooth decay is the number one reason for 6-10 year-olds being admitted to hospital. The Conservatives are only promising to do something about it now there’s an election coming. By adopting Labour’s proposals for recruitment and supervised toothbrushing, they are finally admitting that they are out of ideas of their own.
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