Danny Healy-Rae warns of dental crisis as dentists refuse medical cards
Danny Healy-Rae spoke about the growing difficulty medical card holders face in accessing dental care, saying many dentists will not take medical card patients and people must travel out of county for treatment. He urged the minister to review provision in Kerry and highlighted impacts on pensioners, children and general health.
Danny Healy-Rae told the Dáil that, in many areas, "practically no dentist will take a patient on a medical card to remove a tooth, to extract" and that dentists say they have no agreement with the State or are not being properly compensated. He said this forces people to travel outside their county to receive urgent dental treatment.
He argued the system is unfair to pensioners who paid PRSI and contributed all their working lives, yet still face refusals for routine and urgent dental work under the medical card. He said dentists are busy and do not feel the scheme covers their costs, leaving vulnerable patients without care.
Danny Healy-Rae described cases of young people delaying treatment until problems become more severe, stressing that early extractions or orthodontic work is easier at younger ages. He recounted a case where it took about two years to get a girl treated, which led to school absence and social withdrawal before she eventually received care.
He thanked Brian Stanley for raising the issue and said the shortage is particularly acute in Kerry, though he noted it is also reported elsewhere such as parts of Cork. He urged specific attention to Kerry because patients are being forced to seek treatment outside the county.
He exhorted the minister to examine and improve the system, calling it a health issue that can cause wider bodily problems and significant pain. He warned that the current arrangement is not acceptable and needs urgent review to ensure medical card holders can access necessary dental services.
Dental care access for medical card patients
Danny Healy-Rae told the Dáil that, in many areas, "practically no dentist will take a patient on a medical card to remove a tooth, to extract" and that dentists say they have no agreement with the State or are not being properly compensated. He said this forces people to travel outside their county to receive urgent dental treatment.
Impact on pensioners and PRSI contributions
He argued the system is unfair to pensioners who paid PRSI and contributed all their working lives, yet still face refusals for routine and urgent dental work under the medical card. He said dentists are busy and do not feel the scheme covers their costs, leaving vulnerable patients without care.
Children, delayed treatment and worsening problems
Danny Healy-Rae described cases of young people delaying treatment until problems become more severe, stressing that early extractions or orthodontic work is easier at younger ages. He recounted a case where it took about two years to get a girl treated, which led to school absence and social withdrawal before she eventually received care.
Local shortages in Kerry and neighbouring counties
He thanked Brian Stanley for raising the issue and said the shortage is particularly acute in Kerry, though he noted it is also reported elsewhere such as parts of Cork. He urged specific attention to Kerry because patients are being forced to seek treatment outside the county.
Request to the minister and health implications
He exhorted the minister to examine and improve the system, calling it a health issue that can cause wider bodily problems and significant pain. He warned that the current arrangement is not acceptable and needs urgent review to ensure medical card holders can access necessary dental services.
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Transcript
Thank you very much, Laskin-Cole. I'm glad to get the opportunity. I want to thank Brian Stanley for this very important, serious matter and to give us all the chance to say a few words on it today because we know about the scenario and Kerry is a very drastic minister. Practically no dentist will take a patient on a medical card to remove a tooth, to extract, to deal with a metal minister. And we have gladly found when people were very in dire circumstances found places in another county. That's a poor reflection. And we would think that people, some of these people would be on a pension and just a state pension and they worked all their lives and they contributed their stamps and all that and that the medical card won't be taken. They have a medical card and the dentists. And what they say to me that they have no agreement with the state or that they're not being properly compensated for carrying out the work. and they don't undertake the work thing. They're very busy anyway. And then the people that pay their stamps. What is the PRSI for? Pay-related social insurance. It doesn't cover that anymore. And at least the dentists are saying it's not covered. And then you're the young people. And I have had many cases of girls and boys coming up to their group set and coming up indeed to their leaving set. They're actually, they go shy because their mouths are wrong and they need extractions and they need straightening and they need a whole lot of work. And the longer that goes on and when their mouths become firm it's a way more difficult and a way bigger job. And it's easier when the children are 13 or 14 to do that type of work. And I had one girl, her mother was so concerned about her. She wouldn't leave her room. She was missing days in school. She wouldn't go out in the evening. And the mother was constantly worried about it. It took about two years, Minister, to get that little girl seen after. A lovely girl. She's doing very well now. But the battle that we had to get her seen after. There has been many other cases. And we hear about, when we were going to primary school ourselves, Minister, they didn't just call to the school and undertook whatever was to be done and talked to the parents and we got sorted out. But that's not the case anymore. And I mean, look, this is a new government but this same system pertained in the last government all through it. And many of the members and ministers are the same. I'm asking you to look at this. This is very serious. And see if it can be improved because it has to be. It's just not fair. And it's a health issue. When a mouth goes wrong and teeter wrong and so many other things go wrong. It causes adverse, it causes other parts of our body to not be working right. And on top of that, the pain which then, there was a publican across the road from ourselves, John Riley, and he'll say about teeth, he said, there are trouble coming and there are trouble going. But there's a lot of trouble with this now minister and we're grateful to Brian Stanley for recognizing it and bringing it forward here today and identifying the problem. But the main thing, dentists are not taking the medical care and we have to go outside the county with people that are in a bad way and that's actually what's happening. And I'm asking you to especially look at Kerry because for this very reason, we seem to be, there's some, it's happening in Cork. Because we have Deputy Flynn saying that there's no dentists in the matter taking the medical care. But there are other parts of Cork that are, but there's nothing happening in Kerry. And that's the honest truth of it and dentists are upset about it. They don't want to be refusing people and it just sucked them out. It's moving, minister. And it should be, the people are paying into the scheme as well, you see.