Nicole Ryan (Sinn Fein)

Last year, more than 100,000 children missed out on the basic dental health screenings they were entitled to. These screenings are meant to happen in second, fourth and sixth classes, which are critical development stages. Delaying them means missing signs of disease, delaying intervention and preventing suffering. At the same time, the number of dentists serving medical card holders has drastically been slashed.

When it comes to children with additional needs, the system is even more broken. The HSE does not collect data on special care patients. Many of them are waiting two years or longer for treatment under general anaesthetic. Take the case of Tiernan Power Murphy, a six-year-old autistic boy who was in severe dental pain. He needed to have three teeth removed. His family were told they could be waiting ten years for dental care, and their only option was to pay €2,500.

There is also the story of a constituent of mine, a young woman who has been a patient at Cork dental hospital for more than ten years due to an unusual case of supernumerary teeth. Because of the Covid pandemic, she was not able to be seen. When she did get her X-ray, it was found she has an extremely rare case of tooth resorption affecting four to five of her teeth, which can fall out at any time, and the cost of that is €10,000. What kind of State allows that?

This is not isolated, as we have heard. Families across the country are being forced to go private or go without, based not on clinical need but their ability to pay. Meanwhile, the Government’s oral health policy, Smile agus Sláinte, is gathering dust, promised reforms to dental treatment services are delayed, the dentists Bill is missing and a dental school in UCC to tackle workforce shortages is paused. Oral health is healthcare, pain is pain, and neglect is neglect. That is the Minister of State’s responsibility. Our children deserve better, and our families deserve even more.