Pat Buckley (Cork East, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State, Deputy Colm Burke, for being here tonight. I am raising the long waiting list for dentures, specifically for people over 70. I want to go back to a newspaper article in January 2009, which appeared under the subheading: "Dentures will be rationed for medical card holders as part of a wave of Health Service Executive ... cutbacks, dentists representatives warned." The article states:

The Irish Dental Association ... chief executive ... said dentures are the most expensive discretionary item provided for under the general medical card scheme.

Because of that we are getting strong indications they will be the first thing to go,” he said.

Currently, dentists can perform routine dental work, such as examinations, fillings and extractions on medical card patients without receiving authorisation from a HSE principal dental surgeon. More expensive treatment items, such as advanced gum treatment, large x-rays and dentures, must be authorised by the HSE.

In July 2023, the same chief executive said that nearly 500 more dentists were needed in order to meet demand. An article in the Irish Independent on 19 March last stated, "More than 13,000 people now on waiting lists for dental surgery".

The issue of dental services was recently raised in the Seanad by Senator Tim Lombard. The information he received is that in the Cork and Kerry region, as of last June, while 860 patients had their orthodontic needs assessed in the first six months of the year, a whopping 2,900 patients were still waiting for an assessment. While 1,937 patients were in active treatment at the time, there were 2,600 patients waiting to start treatment at the end of June. That is slightly different in that it probably relates to the younger generation, but it is still indicative of the crisis that the dental service is in. It was also stated that the HSE says that the problem is a lack of participation by private dentists in the scheme, because there is an embargo on the recruitment of its staff.

A number of people have been in contact with my office in recent months in respect of this matter. I also spoke to a very good friend of mine about it at the weekend, which prompted me to table a parliamentary question on it but I have not received a response to it yet. We will call my friend Dave from Midleton. About 15 months ago, he had problems with his dentures. He brought them to the local dentist and paid to get them fixed. The Minister of State should bear in mind that he is a pensioner. When he went on a waiting list more than a year ago he asked how long he would be waiting. They said it would be about two years. Nearly four weeks ago he again had a problem with his dentures. He went back to the dentist and paid to get them repaired. When he asked where he was on the list, he was told he would probably be waiting for two years. He said he was told that last year, so now it is three years.

There are other costs involved. I went on the patient information page on the UCC website. What this gentleman needs is a full upper and lower denture replacement. The quote I have is for €1,100. As a pensioner, there is no way he can afford that. One of the necessities in life is that we are able to eat. We can imagine what it would be like at that stage in life if we could not even put in dentures to chew food. It is absolutely ridiculous that the basic rights of the most vulnerable are being ignored and excused by waiting lists, but if a person has cash, he or she would only be waiting a couple of weeks. What will the Minister of State do for the likes of this man, and the others who have come to me? They are in fear of their life. They are afraid to ask. They are ashamed to say they cannot afford it, so they just sit there in pain.

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