Colm Burke (Cork North-Central, Fine Gael)
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134. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection to provide an estimate of the accumulated total in cuts in spending on the dental treatment service scheme since 2010 as compared with the baseline annual total spent in 2009; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52253/26]

Colm Burke (Cork North-Central, Fine Gael)
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135. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection to provide an estimate on the amount that would have been spent on the dental treatment service scheme in 2025 if spending had been maintained at 2009 levels with CPI applied in the intervening period and taking into account the current numbers of citizens eligible to receive PRSI benefit; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52254/26]

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 134 and 135 together.

The Treatment Benefit Scheme provides dental, optical and aural services to insured workers, the self-employed, retired people and their dependent spouse/partner who have the required number of social insurance (PRSI) contributions. In 2026, the Department of Social Protection has provided an estimated expenditure of over €190 million for the scheme.

Prior to 2010, a range of the dental treatments not currently provided under the scheme were available, including contributions towards fillings, extractions, root canal work and dentures. The cost in 2009 for all the dental treatments under the scheme was €71 million.

However, as part of measures to ease the financial pressures at the time, the Government decided in Budget 2010 to restrict the dental services available under the scheme to examinations only. In 2017, eligibility was also extended to the self-employed in addition to the reintroduction of cover for the scale and polish treatment.

Currently, the dental treatments covered under the scheme are examinations, scale and polish and periodontal treatments.

My Department has not conducted the exact analysis requested by the Deputy. The 2024 Annual Statistics Report sets out expenditure on Dental Benefit for each year in the period 2015-2024 in table D1, while the total number of persons availing of Dental Benefit over the same period is set out in table D3. The report is available through gov.ie/dsp/statistics and is published as a PDF report and in excel format.

Any changes to the scheme would have to be considered in a budgetary context, taking account of the economic circumstances and with a view to the sustainability of the Social Insurance Fund.