Concerns over access to dental care for Wexford medical card holders

Concerns have been raised about access to dental treatment for medical card holders in Wexford, with new figures showing just 17 dentists in the county are participating in the HSE scheme.

The figures were obtained by Wicklow-Wexford Fianna Fáil TD Malcolm Byrne, who says the declining number of dentists participating in the scheme is making it increasingly difficult for medical card holders to access treatment.

Nationally, the number of private dentists signed up to treat medical card patients has fallen from 1,354 in 2020 to 866 this year.

There has been some recovery from the lowest point, with just 812 dentists participating in 2023 and 2024.

The Irish Dental Association says the medical card dental scheme is not financially viable at existing fee levels.

The current scheme limits eligible patients to treatments including two fillings a year, extractions and an annual scale and polish, while more complex treatments such as additional fillings and dentures require HSE approval.

The IDA is calling for a comprehensive reform of the scheme, including a patient-centred credit or voucher system which would allow patients to use allocated funding towards the dental care they need.

The Department of Health says more than 241,000 additional treatments were provided under the medical card scheme last year, with around 50,000 more patients treated than in 2022.

Reform of dental services for medical card holders is now listed as a priority in the Government's action plan for dental services.