Nearly three-quarters of dentists are accepting patients through the new Canada Dental Care Plan (CDCP), but dentist participation rates still vary widely by province.
According to data obtained by CBC News, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Nunavut, Yukon and the Northwest Territories have the lowest rates of dentist participation in the CDCP. In New Brunswick, just 40 per cent of dentists accept CDCP patients. In the three territories, just 38 per cent of dentists participate in the program.
The provincial and territorial data was provided to CBC News after repeated requests over a four-week period from Health Canada and Health Minister Mark Holland’s office.
It’s unclear how difficult it may be for patients outside urban areas to find dental practices that accept CDCP patients: data is not available on the number of participating dentists in rural and remote parts of Canada, Holland spokesman Matthew Kronberg told CBC News.
“I think it’s complete bullshit,” said Susan Francis, 69, who lives in the small community of Kindersley, Saskatchewan.
“I think it’s a no-brainer to figure out where it’s being used and where it’s not being used.”
Francis said there are no dental clinics nearby that will accept him through CDCP, so he plans to drive more than two hours to Saskatoon to go to a dental clinic that will accept him through CDCP.
“It’s really unfortunate,” she said. “I’m happy that I can get dental care for free, but I have to pay for gas.”
“It needs to be accessible to everyone, not just people who live in urban areas.”
Oral health professionals will voluntarily participate in the new national dental insurance scheme by either registering as dentists or by registering as dental practitioners. Registered Provider or by processing patient claims. It depends on the case.
The low participation rate among New Brunswick dentists is likely due to low staffing in dental offices, said Paul Blanchard, executive director of the New Brunswick Dental Association.
“The population here has grown quite a bit since COVID and we’re seeing an ageing population of dentists,” Blanchard said, adding that New Brunswick has one of the worst dentist-to-patient ratios in the country.
“Right now, a significant portion of dental offices are unable to accept new patients,” he said, “and the program has not been fully rolled out.”
Only 13 dentists in the area offer CDCP
Right now, Applying for CDCP This applies to seniors, children under 18, and people receiving the Federal Disability Tax Credit. The remaining eligible adults will be able to apply for coverage starting in January 2025.
Holland’s office said 2.3 million Canadians have been approved for coverage so far, less than a third of the nine million people the program is expected to cover starting next year.
More than half a million Canadians have been treated under the new program since it began in May, according to Health Canada data, with the majority of applications coming in from Ontario and Quebec, where more than 11,000 dentists are accepting CDCP patients.
Meanwhile, in the three regions, only 51 claims have been filed so far and only 13 dentists are accepting patients through the plan.
“I’m not surprised,” said Dr. Steven Partyka, an Iqaluit dentist and president of the Dental Association of the Northwest Territories and Nunavut.
Only two dental clinics participate in the CDCP, one in Nunavut and one in the Northwest Territories.
Partika said many dentists in the area are reluctant to participate, worried about staffing shortages and extra paperwork.
He said many dentists in the territory are covered by another major national dental insurance scheme, Uninsured medical benefits The NHIB provides dental insurance to uninsured First Nations and Inuit.
“A lot of dentists don’t have a warm feeling towards the NHIB because of what has happened in the past in terms of the administrative burden it has placed on dental practices,” Mr Partika said.
The low prevalence of CDCP in the region may also reflect the fact that many in the region have access to other public and private dental programs designed to offset the high cost of living in the North.
The CDCP would be a major expansion of Canada’s universal health care system, expected to cost taxpayers $13 billion over the next five years and eventually cover one in four Canadians who don’t have a private dental insurance plan and have a household income of less than $90,000.
The program was a key component of the recently concluded Confidence and Supply Agreement between the Liberal government and the federal NDP, in which the New Democrats agreed to vote with the Liberals on key bills in the House of Commons in exchange for the creation of new social security programs like national dental care and pharmaceutical benefits.
Have questions about how Canada’s new dental plan affects you? Email us at ask@cbc.ca .
