England: Setting the record straight on NHS charge hike
28 March 2023
The government has decided to hike NHS dental charges by 8.5% from 24 April 2023.
If you treat NHS patients, we want to help you set the record straight on who benefits from this increase.
The revenue raised by this rise doesn’t go to dentists. It will do nothing to help struggling practices or the millions of patients unable to secure an appointment.
Ministers are simply making our patients pay more so they can pay less.
What you can do:
This increase will hurt some of the patients who need us most. The government’s own data shows 1 million patients chose not to see a dentist for reasons of cost in 2022.
“This is an utterly grotesque display of priorities from the Treasury,” said Shawn Charlwood, General Dental Practice Committee Chair.
“The Government did not have to go down this path during a cost-of-living crisis. This is a cold, calculated political choice, that will hit millions on modest incomes.”
We need urgent and fundamental reform of the NHS dental contract underpinned by sustainable investment. This approach fails both patients and this profession.
