29.05.12
Private prices for dentistry on the NHS
Dentists could be deliberately misleading patients about their NHS entitlements to charge them for private treatment, a report by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) warns.
The report suggests that half a million patients a year may have unnecessarily paid to receive private dental care, with many receiving insufficient information to make choices about dentists and treatments.
The OFT has also raised concerns about the restrictions that prevent patients from directly accessing other dental care professionals without a referral from a dentist. Additionally, the structure of dentist contracts makes it difficult for new practices to be established, or successful practices expanded.
John Fingleton, the OFT’s chief executive, said: “All too often patients lack access to the information they need, for example when choosing a dentist or when getting dental treatment.
“This study has also highlighted that the current NHS dental contract in England may well not be working in the best interests of patients, and that regulations unjustifiably restrict patients from getting direct access to dental care professionals like hygienists.”
The British Dental Association (BDA) has since agreed to develop a robust and effective code of practice covering the sale of such plans.
But Dr Susie Sanderson, chair of the BDA’s executive board, asserted that researched confirmed the “vast majority” of patients were happy with the care they receive.
She said: “This report treats dentistry purely as a market, and dental care as a commodity. In doing so, it has taken a simplistic view of dental care that fails to take into account the huge sums of money dentists invest in surgeries and ignores the unique role in screening and diagnosis that dentists are trained to perform.”
Nigel Carter, chief executive of the British Dental Health Foundation, said: “The Steele Review, which was commissioned by the last government, has already addressed the concerns raised around the 2006 NHS contracts and a replacement proposal is already being piloted. The results of this will be used to help shape the future of the way NHS dentistry is delivered.
“The recommendation for the GDC to require that private practices display a pricing structure is irrelevant. A dentist should provide a patient with a treatment plan, and as each patient’s plan is different, fixed pricing will lead to confusion and the possibility of disappointed patient expectations.”
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