Alan Dillon (Mayo, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for his response. We have similar examples in Mayo where elderly people had to look for appointments in Sligo to fix their dentures, which is completely unacceptable.

On another point, the lack of access to dental treatment for young people is causing great difficulty for primary schoolchildren who are to be examined and treated by the HSE dental services in second, fourth and sixth class, before the age of 12. We are having significant problems with many checks coming after significant developmental milestones. It is a major issue. Additional supports must be put in place. There is a large backlog of 13,000 children who are waiting for orthodontic treatment for grades 4 and 5 on the HSE eligibility criteria. That must be addressed. We must also put in place supports for parents if they cannot get access to the HSE service and have to go privately for treatment. How can we support families in that regard?

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