Fiona O'Loughlin (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Cathaoirleach for selecting this matter. It is a most important issue in south Kildare and, indeed, right around the country. I thank the Minister of State for attending today's debate. I have been contacted frequently by people in south Kildare who are entitled to dental services under the terms of the medical card scheme, but who cannot avail of the services due to a lack of provision in the area. I understand the people in south Kildare are not on their own. It is happening right across the country. We all know the pain and difficulty that a dental problem causes, whether it is a toothache, a broken tooth or an issue with dental braces. I have a dental problem at the moment. I must say that my dentist has been very patient with me making appointments and changing them because of commitments in Leinster House. Generally, dental problems are very time sensitive. When something needs to be done, it needs to be done very quickly to help alleviate the pain that a person is experiencing. That is simply not happening in my area. Last month, we heard reports of dentists flooding out of the State's medical card scheme, leaving older people and those in low-income households without access to basic oral healthcare.

The figures from the start of the year show that only 660 dentists across the country have been actively treating medical card patients. There is a particular problem with dentists retiring. New dentists are coming in to take over the practices and many of them decide not to support their patients who have medical cards. It is a real problem. The number of contracted dentists is down significantly from 1,660 in 2017. We have lost 1,000 contracted dentists since then. We should bear in mind that during the two years of Covid, people suffered in silence, in many cases. Now they are trying to get the treatment they need. The demand for dental services is the same as it was in 2017, if not increased. At the same time, there has been a reduction in provision. This is leading to unacceptable waiting times. Indeed, the waiting times have no end for the patients who cannot access a dentist. When dentists drop out of the scheme, the HSE is trying to squeeze patients back into an already-overcrowded system, leading to even longer delays. I know that in response to a parliamentary question the Department of Health stated that the situation is regrettable and has led to difficulties. I ask the Minister of State whether she has any insight into why dentist are leaving the scheme. What can be done in the intervening months to see the situation improved? I understand that in April €26 million was put into the scheme. That is certainly very welcome, but it does not seem to have alleviated the problem.

Dental organisations have called for the current medical card scheme to be replaced with a voucher scheme. I understand that the Irish Dental Association has highlighted that dentists want a new scheme that reflects modern dental practice. We have to listen to them and negotiate with them. We must ensure that a plan is put in place to allow vulnerable groups to access routine dental care in their community. The announcement of increases in the fees of contracted dentists and the reintroduction of cleaning services under the scheme were both welcome and positive steps.

I wish to highlight the case of a young man with autism who I know. His dentist has opted out of the scheme. His mum has contacted 20 different dental practices and cannot get him into any of them. It is wrong. The young man has complex additional needs and relies heavily on his parents. He is in absolute agony and his mum feels helpless in supporting him. I ask the Minister of State to outline the plans in place to support the people in south Kildare with medical cards and an entitlement to dental care, but who cannot access that service at present.