In a bid to convince dentists who are hesitant to join the federal dental care plan, the health minister announced Monday that dentists can now “test drive” the program before committing fully.
The change was first announced in April after dental associations raised concerns about the program’s design and that their members were slow to sign up to provide care.
“It is critical that every provider in the country be registered,” Health Minister Mark Holland said at a news conference in Nova Scotia on Monday.
So far, just under 50 per cent of dental professionals in Canada have registered, he said.
Nova Scotia is particularly “behind the curve” when it comes to recruiting dental professionals, Holland added, particularly in rural and remote areas.
And while he said registrations have started to increase, the minister hopes the new process will allow more dentists to accept the new government coverage.
The program was a condition of the Liberals’ political pact with the NDP and is aimed at uninsured people whose family income is less than $90,000 a year.
Dentists have been concerned for months about the impact of the program on their businesses. The government has amended it accordingly, but last month Mr Holland suggested dental associations were “actively looking” for problems.
This latest change to the program would give providers the freedom to participate without having to register. In practical terms, it would allow dentists to submit claims on an ad hoc basis without having to formally register as a provider.
Mr. Holland says that once they try the program, they will see how simple and straightforward it is to participate.
White bonnet, white bonnet
The new process does not address the core concerns of dentists, as they must still accept the same terms and conditions in both cases, said Canadian Dental Association President Dr.r Joel Antel.
“It really doesn’t change anything,” insisted Dr. Antel, who did not join the program as part of his own practice.
“The concerns raised by dental associations to the Minister were related to the very long and complex list of modalities which greatly disrupt the smooth running of a dental practice.”
The Dr Antel said dental associations are particularly concerned about the government’s ability to go back and reassess claims at a later date.
Minister Holland said the terms and conditions are fairly standard and that audits would only be carried out if fraud was suspected.
“Like any other agreement, there are terms and conditions. I can’t make them go away. I would be rightly pilloried if there were no terms and conditions,” he recalled.
More transparency demanded
Dental associations have also called on the government to proactively inform patients that their coverage is not free and that they will likely have to pay for part of the service out of pocket.
The Conservative health critic described the program as “riddled with chaos, backlogs and red tape”.
But Mr Holland insisted the project had been remarkably successful.
“Every step forward, every new patient seen, is a huge success,” Holland said. “I think we need to focus on that steady, constant progress.”
The government has processed nearly 250,000 dental claims for seniors enrolled in the program since coverage launched in May.
Eligibility was recently expanded and so far approximately 10,000 people with disabilities and 25,000 children have applied for coverage.