Canada's new public dental care plan has undergone several changes since its launch in May, including dropping a controversial requirement for dentists to sign contracts allowing audits. The government is now focusing on expanding access to more Canadians while winning over health professionals who provide the care.
When the Canadian Dental Care Plan debuted in May, Maneesh Jain – a Guelph, Ont., dentist and president of the Ontario Dental Association – refused to sign up.
It’s part of an evolution of the program, which continues to go through changes, with more coming in November and into next year. Ottawa is slowly expanding access to more Canadians, but in doing so must win over the health professionals who are providing the care. Eligibility opened in waves in 2024, first for seniors in different age brackets, then adults with valid Disability Tax Credit certificates and children. All other Canadians who qualify will be able to sign up next year.
Aaron Burry, the chief executive officer of the Canadian Dental Association, said this will be significant because patients who have gone a long time without seeing a dentist – in other words, the kind of patients the plan is designed to reach – are more likely to have serious needs. Brandon Doucet, a Newfoundland dentist and chair of the Coalition for Dentalcare, said many dentists have traditionally considered providing care under provincial plans a money-losing operation, because they often reimburse less than half of the suggested fees. But the federal program is more generous, he said, pointing to Nova Scotia, where dentists are reimbursed, on average, 88 per cent of the suggested fees.
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