Collapse of dental services in Carlow at 'crises point'

Sinn Féin TD for Carlow/Kilkenny Kathleen Funchion, has expressed alarm at the collapse in dental services for Carlow in the last two years.

They have said that this has reached crisis point as waiting lists for dental and orthodontic treatments soar and dentists drop out of medical card scheme in record numbers.

The TD said:

“The collapse in dental services for Carlow is at crisis point, with more than 30% of dentists in the Carlow and Kilkenny area having left the medical card dental scheme in the last 5 years.

“This crisis is underlined in the collapse in spending on dental treatment in Carlow and Kilkenny by 39%.

“The Irish Dental Association highlighted their concerns recently in the Health Committee, stating that difficulty in accessing dental treatment contributes to poor oral health and greater healthcare costs.

“The burden of this disproportionately falls on lower income groups, especially those who rely on medical cards.

“Dentists have expressed ethical as well as practical concerns about unilateral cuts to the dental scheme imposed during austerity.

“This devastated dentists’ ability to deliver quality care to medical card patients while the HSE dental and orthodontic waiting lists continue to spiral out of control.

“Care delayed is care denied and the crisis in health continues to get worse under this Government", she concluded.

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