Next stage of the dental contract reform published

dental contractThe Department of Health has published the next stage of the dental contract reform today and opened an expression of interest for dental practices to take part in the new dental prototypes.

Health minister, Lord Howe, said: ‘The oral health of the nation has been improving year on year, with some of the lowest tooth decay rates in the world and millions more people accessing an NHS dentist.

‘This is the next step in shifting dental care to a more preventative approach and paying dentists for supporting good dental health rather than just the number of procedures they do.’

Chief dental officer, Barry Cockcroft, said: ‘Prevention rather than cure is better for patients and dentists, as decay and gum disease are almost completely preventable.

‘This change in culture will educate patients on how to better take care of their mouths and support dentists to offer patients the most appropriate care.

‘The future of dental health also relies on us working together to reach those who, to date, have not visited the dentist despite the improvements in access.’

You can view the prototype contracts here.

Background

  • The pilot scheme is been trialled at 94 dental practices across the country including 92 high street practices and two community dental services
  • The total expenditure on NHS dentistry was over £3 billion in 2013/14. Dentists currently get paid for the amount of treatments they provide, the new system will pay dentists for the numbers of patients seen, treatments provided and the quality of care.
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