Re: Is NHS Dentistry Near Collapse?

George's Post:

t's getting there slowly Flap. The new contract that has been delayed
for 2 years now will come in effect in April '06. As always, the
government made so many modifications it barely resembles the contract
promised to the profession 2 years ago. It is now so ridiculous that
many practices will go fully private, stopping NHS provision even for
children and patients on benefits. A few key points of the new
contract:
1) Your income is capped; you will be paid an amount of money yearly
equal to previous years. The underfunding is therefore not addressed.
For people thinking of that as a salary, you will still have to carry
out expenses and the risk of a business.
2) The treadmill is still there, as you will have to perform 95% of
what you performed before to get the money. Of course, if you perform
105% there is no additional money.
3) You will not be able to provide NHS services only to children or
benefit patients. It's a "all NHS or no NHS" kind of thing.
4) Under the new system, molar endo or reimplantation of a tooth
carries the same value as an occlusal amalgam filling.
5) You will not be able to refuse NHS treatment to anyone asking for
it. The only reasons you can refruse a patient are direct physical
violence or refusal to pay. Abusive language or a breakdown in the
dentist-patient relationship is not a good reason.
6) You will not be able to charge for failed appointments.
7) In general, intrusion by the government in the everyday affairs of
your practice will be so great, you essentially give the keys of your
practice and your goodwill to them.
8) Patient charges will go up; it has been estimated that most patients
will pay between 50%-100% more for dental treatment. Your regular,
low-need patients will be financially penalised to pay for irregular,
high-need patients, in a true social fashion (which is OK, but let's
not forget that people are already supposed to pay huge taxes for this
sort of thing). All of this money will go to the government, so you
will be acting as a dental tax collector.
Not one week goes by in which there is not a piece in the tv or the
rags about some practice going private. As we come closer to April,
conversion into private practice will accelerate. The media and the
public have begun to wake up from their deep slumber and realise the
lies put forth but Bliar and his cronies.
To see their tactics, last week there was a practice going private near
Scotland and a quueu of people formed outside the practice to register
as private patients. Two MPs (parliament members) were outside giving
leaflets to people saying that they didn't need to go private and soon
they would have NHS dentists for everyone (same promise they made 7
years ago). The patients basically told them "you failed us, now get
lost".

George

Flap's Reply:

It looks like private dentistry is coming to the UK whether the Labour
government likes it or not.

I suppose they could try to outlaw private insurance like they did in
the Canadian medical system (recently overturned by the Canadian
Supreme Court).

Are there enough dentists currently in practice to handle all of the
people?

If there is a private system the market forces of demand should be a
windfall for you guys.

Flap

http://flapsblog.com

.

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