Thank you for allowing me to raise this issue and I thank the Minister for attending. We welcome the new national dental scheme, but there are some problems with it. It is a regional scheme run by the board at central level, rather than the individual community care scheme that was previously in place. In addition, the emergency treatment, which was not as broad as in the past, is using a significant amount of the resources available for the scheme. For example, people requiring dentures must still wait an inordinate length of time.
With regard to social welfare recipients who are also medical card holders, formerly, such person who had paid contributions, whether they were still working, or pensioners over the age of 65 years who had contributed during their working years, were entitled to apply to their own dentists and avail of services. The Department of Social Welfare paid 50 per cent of the cost of the supply of dentures and the health boards made a payment towards the other 50 per cent. Recipients were, therefore, at no loss.
The health board contribution is no longer paid in such circumstances. Part of the problem is not only that the schemes differ fundamentally in certain respects, but that payments are now made to the private dentists through the payments board, and not directly by the health boards. Will the Minister ensure that the disadvantage which social welfare recipients who are medical card holders now find themselves at will be removed?
Will the Minister also discuss with his colleague, the Minister for Social Welfare, the question of running two parallel dental services and perhaps agree on an integrated unified dental service? The same applies to the ophthalmic service, where there are two separate schemes in operation, and to the ear, nose and throat service. At a time when the Department of Social Welfare is assuming responsibility for income allowances from the Department of Health, there is a good case for transfering the medical services provided through the Department of Social Welfare to the health boards under the aegis of the Minister for Health.