This week, the Government announced its NHS Dental Recovery Plan. Backed by £200 million, the plan will see over 2.5 million additional NHS dental treatments delivered for patients through measures including:
- New patient payments for NHS dentists to treat adults and children who have not seen a dentist in over two years
- Incentivising NHS dentists to work in underserved areas with one-off payments of up to £20,000.00
- Launching dental vans to help deliver care in rural and coastal areas.
- Rolling out the Smile for Life programme, focusing on prevention to reduce dental decay in children
- Offering fairer payments for NHS dentists, making NHS work more attractive and incentivising dentists to treat patients who need it most.
- Increasing dentistry training places as part of our NHS Long-Term Workforce Plan, training the dental workforce we need
When talking with Erewash residents, I know many are concerned about the lack of access to NHS dental appointments, particularly as a number of local NHS dentists have recently retired.
In Parliament, I asked the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Rt Hon Victoria Atkins MP, how the Dental Recovery Plan will help speed up the recruitment of NHS dentist, ensuring that practices in Erewash can offer patients NHS appointments. You can view my question here.