Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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3278. To ask the Minister for Health the estimated cost to reinstate the 2008 dental treatment services scheme. [41210/21]

Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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The Dental Treatment Services Scheme (DTSS) provides dental care, free of charge to medical card holders aged 16 and over. These services are provided by independent dental practitioners who have a contract with the HSE. As part of Budget 2010 measures, the range of treatments provided under the Scheme was reduced in order to cap expenditure at the 2008 level of €63 million. The cost in 2021 of restoring treatments which had been provided before 2010 would depend on a number of factors, including the underlying oral health of the population and the level of take-up of such services.

The national approach to future oral health service provision will be informed by Smile agus Sláinte, the National Oral Health Policy, which was published in 2019. The aim of the policy is to develop a model of care that will enable preventative approaches to be prioritised, improve access, and support interventions appropriate to current and future oral health needs.