Pat Buckley (Cork East, Sinn Fein)
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Many of my questions have been asked, especially the issue of accountability which Deputy Louise O'Reilly raised. It comes up over and over again. Dr. Burke touched on dental care. Poor dental care leads to underlying problems later, such as heart problems. We keep raising the issue that we are a cure society rather than a prevention society. Would Dr. Burke look at initiating it very quickly and start rolling out the schemes we used to have with free dental checks and care such as cleanings? It is a preventative measure on a huge scale. We probably have the worst dental record in Europe among young children, never mind adults. In her opening statement, Dr. Burke mentioned that while 45% of the population has private health insurance, it contributes to only 9% of the total cost of care. Could she explain more about it?