Next month will see prices rise for all treatments on the NHS, adding to people’s woes. April 1 has already been branded ‘April Cruel’s Day’ due to the number of price increases which are set to happen.
Later on in the month the NHS has said that standard charges will go up from April 25 - meaning that the price of a check-up will rise from £23.80 to £25.80 and a filling appointment will cost patients £70.70, up from £65.20, BirminghamLive reports.
Health Minister Neil O’Brien has announced: “The most recent uplift was in December 2020, delayed from April 2020 due to the impacts of the pandemic. Whilst there has been no uplift for two years, the cost of delivering NHS dental care has increased.”
Read more: Full list of benefits going up from April 2023 – from Universal Credit to state pension
The British Dental Association chairman Shawn Charlwood said: “This hike won’t put a single penny into a struggling service. Our patients are being asked to pay more simply so ministers can pay less – the Government did not have to go down this path during a cost-of-living crisis. This will hit millions on modest incomes.”
A YouGov survey of 2,104 people across Great Britain last August found 10% have performed dentistry on themselves and one in five (22%) are currently not registered with a dentist. Of those who are unregistered, more than a third (37%) said it is because they cannot find an NHS dentist to take them on, with a further 5% on a waiting list.
While another 23% said they are not registered because they do not think they can afford to be treated. Of those who have done DIY dentistry, 56% did so within the last two years, including 36% who did so within the last year.
Shawn Charlwood, chairman of the British Dental Association’s general dental practice committee, said: “NHS dentistry is at a tipping point, with millions unable to get the care they need and more dentists leaving with every day that passes.
“We’re seeing the results of years of chronic neglect, set into overdrive by the pressures of the pandemic. The question now is will ministers step up before it’s too late? Nothing we’ve heard from government to date gives us any confidence this service has a future. Without real reform and fair funding NHS dentistry will die, and our patients will pay the price.”
NHS dental charges for 2023-24
Band |
Description |
From April 2023 (proposed) |
1 |
This band includes examination, diagnosis (including radiographs), advice on how to prevent future problems, scale and polish if clinically needed, and preventative care (e.g. applications of fluoride varnish or fissure sealant) |
£25.80 |
2 |
This band covers everything listed in band 1, plus any further treatment such as fillings, root canal work or extractions |
£70.70 |
3 |
This band covers everything in bands 1 and 2, plus course of treatment including crowns, dentures, bridges and other laboratory work |
£306.80 |
Urgent |
This band covers urgent assessment and specified urgent treatments such as pain relief or a temporary filling or dental appliance repair |
£25.80 |
The BDA previously said that since March 2020, some 3,000 dentists are understood to have moved away from NHS work entirely. A Department of Health and Social Care spokeswoman said: “Improving patient access to NHS dental care is a government priority and the new reforms to the dental contract announced last month are an important step.
"Allowing the best performing practices to see more patients, making better use of the range of professionals working in the sector such as dental therapists, hygienists and nurses, while also rewarding dentists more fairly for providing more complex care.
“The NHS commits around £3 billion to dentistry each year and have made an extra £50 million to help bust the coronavirus > Covid backlogs, building on the unprecedented £1.7 billion support we provided during the pandemic, to protect teams and patients by paying dental practices for the work they would normally have carried out if it were not for Covid regulations.”
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