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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to wonder why you have to pay for NHS dental treatment

67 replies

anerta · 04/02/2012 11:55

I went to the dentist yesterday for a check up and had my teeth cleaned, for this I had to pay £18.50.Whilst I'm not particulary opposed to this, why do you have to pay for NHS dental treatment but not for other services on the NHS?

OP posts:
Kayano · 04/02/2012 11:57

Because there is not an endless pot of money and teeth are less vital than failing organs and other ailments?

catpark · 04/02/2012 12:00

The check up is free. Cleaning is deemed cosmetic so you are charged. Treatment is also free but if you need a crown etc. you have to pay for the lab to be opened.

Original poster
anerta · 04/02/2012 12:05

If the check up is free and you have to pay for the cleaning why don't they ask whether you want it done rather than saying we are going to give them a clean. I know you could stop them and will next time why do not make it clearer what is free and what you will have to pay for.

OP posts:
FabbyChic · 04/02/2012 12:09

Check ups are NOT free. They are around £18 quid on the NHS.

NHS provides subsidised dental treatment i.e it costs less than seeing a private dentist.

Cleaning of teeth is no longer done at most NHS dentist as it is cosmetic and most dental surgeries charge upwards of £40 for a clean. Think yourself lucky you got yours done free.

karetta · 04/02/2012 12:09

Because dental check ups and cleaning are minor treatments so why should people get it totally for free. However I'd also charge people to go see their GP as well so I'm not against making patients pay a contribution to their treatment.

catpark · 04/02/2012 12:13

FabbyChic, I'm in Scotland and check ups are free and have been for as long as I can remember, only people I know who get charged are those in private dentists. Thought it was the same all over ?

lesley33 · 04/02/2012 12:14

I actually think treatment and check ups should be free. We now know there is a clear link between having poor dental health and this impacting on your physical health e.g. heart

lesley33 · 04/02/2012 12:14

catpark - No another thing that only Scots get free

perceptionreality · 04/02/2012 12:15

If you're on a low income or pregnant you are exempt.

lorcana · 04/02/2012 12:16

How else will it be paid for ? Teeth problems rarely life threatening.

MoggieThatcher · 04/02/2012 12:16

YANBU to wonder. Dental care often isn't given the credit it deserves. Your GP is probably not going to poke around your mouth, but oral problems are linked to many chronic illnesses.

Untreated gum disease is linked to heart disease and preterm birth. Chronic dry mouth could be a sign of Sjogren's or diabetes. Tooth decay could be caused by bulimia, oral sores could point to cancer. And dentists are in a position to notice DV--battering about the face, unusual swelling, bruising, etc.

Not to mention that a broken tooth is extremely painful.

Oh and being able to eat is nice.

Witchofthenorth · 04/02/2012 12:17

In Scotland the check ups are free, everything else in the dentist we pay for.

FabbyChic · 04/02/2012 12:18

In England you pay for a check up. Its a standard rate.

Birdsgottafly · 04/02/2012 12:20

When the welfare state was started, Dental services were free along with medical services.

Then they looked to cut cost so a lot of what was supossed to be part of the Welfare State was removed.

It should have been a better system from the start and is the reason why Americans always mave jokes about British teeth.

Birdsgottafly · 04/02/2012 12:21

Fabby- do you mean those that pay? If you qualify for reduced costs,you get a free check up every six months, in the North West anyway.

purits · 04/02/2012 12:22

I'm with you, OP. I have long wondered why 'free' NHS dentistry is so expensive.
OTOH, I suppose the teeth cleaning example is similar to seeing the GP. You get the consultation for free but pay for the prescription; you get your dental check-up for free but pay for the clean & polish. The analogy breaks down when you get to the major health care. You don't pay for cancer treatment or heart surgery so I don't know why you are charged for fillings, crown, etc.

catyloopylou · 04/02/2012 12:23

Generally the £18.50 charge includes a scale and polish rather than a full clean, which would usually be done by a hygienist for a separate charge.

StrandedBear · 04/02/2012 12:23

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

FabbyChic · 04/02/2012 12:24

My NHS dentist won't scale or polish they send you to a hygienist and charge £40 quid.

migratingsouth · 04/02/2012 12:30

The reason is simple: Margaret Thatcher.

(I see her feline relative is here -)

It was Margaret Thatcher's government that introduces the idea of an internal market in the NHS, and first made us pay for opticians and dentists, which had been under the NHS previously (this is from memory but I was young, do correct me people if I'm wrong?!)

It was the first of many attacks on the NHS, which continue today.

I wonder if it actually saves the state money over all? I wonder if the NHS picks up the bill in other ways.

Gum disease has been linked to heart disease for example. I wonder how big a bill the NHS is picking up through expensive treatment of heart disease which could have been avoided with regular check-ups at the dentist?

MamaChocoholic · 04/02/2012 12:43

I'd rather pay a bit more tax, and have treatment free at the point of contact. It would make people less likely to delay dental treatment, and reduce the eventual cost, surely? Currently people on low incomes get free treatment, so for taxpayers it's either pay in advance, through your tax, or pay at the time (and if you need a crown, that's a big hit all at once).

theDevilHasTheBestMNNames · 04/02/2012 12:50

I think this sometimes - but we are very lucky to actually have an NHS dentist - took alot of finding If/when we move likely we'll probably have to go private or might get DC NHS if we pay - understand that the normal now.

I also moan about having to spend every month buying my asthma inhalers. It's a recent diagnosis so I'm not resigned yet.

Some months need two inhalers others just one and several time this winter antibiotics and steroids tablets on top of my inhalers. If it was definitively two prescriptions a month it would be worth a pre-paid certificate. Oh well at least we can afford it at the moment - there have been times money been so tight I'd have contemplated going with out.

ilovesooty · 04/02/2012 12:59

My NHS dentist won't scale or polish they send you to a hygienist and charge £40 quid

Same here, except it's a few pounds less. What really gets me is how inconvenient the appointments are. I usually opt for one first thing - about 9.15am and have to book ages in advance. Only private patients get seen towards the end of the afternoon. Thankfully I can book a couple of hours off work with enough notice but not everyone can do that. Last time my dentist had "car trouble" (she's notoriously unreliable), then after I'd waited she came in, announced she felt ill and buggered off home again, so they tried to get me to rebook. When I refused to another dentist saw me but after me she refused to see any of the non attending dentists' patients, and I don't blame her.

Auntiestablishment · 04/02/2012 13:02

This descends into management-speak but the first bit is interesting on the history of NHS dentistry in Scotland.

The NHS History shows that charges were brought in from 1952 for dental care.

I don't think it's anything other than a question of what people will accept. I don't have an NHS dentist, the one here only does private patients. If that were the case with GPs, public health would be worse.