NZDA Welcomes Policy To Bolster Dental Spending On Kids

The New Zealand Dental Association (NZDA) has welcomed National Party policy to increase funding for child oral health.

NZDA says that their continued and strong view is that the Community Oral Health Service needs more support, a message they have taken to all political parties directly.

“Successive NZDA presidents have called for increased funding and support for a service that has not coped with the demands of oral health needs of our children, particularly vulnerable children,” said NZDA President Dr Katie Ayers.

“We’ve repeatedly stated that close to 100,000 children being overdue their dental check-ups with the dental therapist, over 30,000 young children per year having teeth extracted, and 7,000 kids each year requiring dental care under general anaesthetic in hospitals, are all signs of an under-funded, stretched system.”

The COVID-19 pandemic and the resultant down time for dental clinics has further impacted on dental care for children.

“We thank parents, and our dental and medical colleagues who have assisted us to speak out on behalf of children and better resourcing for their dental care.

We praise health spokesperson Dr Shane Reti and the National Party health team for picking up the wero here.

We very much look forward to proactively assisting any government who assist us to provide better oral health care to our patients,” says Dr Ayers.

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