From April 1 patient charges for NHS dental treatment in England will rise. Charges for Band 1 treatment will go up by 50p, from £18 to £18.50. The charge for Band 2 treatments will rise by £1.50 from £49 to £50.50. For Band 3 treatments the charge will rise by £5 from £214 to £219.
These charges are collected by dentists but form a tax on having dental treatment.
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To support the implementation of the new ‘Standards for the Dental Team’, the General Dental Council (GDC) has developed an interactive site with case studies, scenarios and FAQs. 'Focus on Standards' has been designed to help registrants test their knowledge on ‘Standards for the Dental Team’. Learning materials for each of the nine principles are included.
The Daily Mirror has published a story about beautician Caroline Sumpter who paid Megawhite Express Teeth Whitening £1,500 only to be told by the General Dental Council that the practice is illegal. She paid the money for a package that included everything to get her started in her new business, including a licence to use the Megawhite name.
The DDRB recommended at 2.5% rise in gross fees for general dental services, but in a written Ministerial Statement, released on 13th March 2014, Jeremy Hunt, Secretary of State for Health, said:
in respect of General Dental Practitioners (GDPs), we accept its recommendation for an increase of 1% to general dental practitioners’ income after allowing for movement in their expenses, but abate the increase in the general dental service contract for GDP staff costs from the recommended 2.5% to 1%. This results in an overall uplift of 1.6% to be applied to gross earnings for independent dental contractors for 2014-15.
Dental leaders see this as a cut when considered in real terms, read more for quotes.
Birmingham dentist, Joyce Trail, who was jailed for 7 years for stealing £1.4 million from the NHS, has been ordered by Warwick Crown Court to repay £1,376,423.83. Any assets she has now, or receives in future, up to this amount can be claimed by the NHS. She was also given a confiscation order of £358,281.87 which she must pay within 18 months.
Read more: Convicted dentist ordered to repay substantial sums
An exercise to recover money allegedly paid to dental practices because of bureaucratic errors by Scottish Government should be postponed because the data on which it is based appears to be seriously flawed, the British Dental Association (BDA) has warned.