State Budget funding for dentistry

The State Budget provides $7.3 million over four years ($1.8 million in 2011-12) to continue dental programs that assist high-need and at-risk patients. A further $19.4 million over four years ($4.1 million in 2011-12) will go towards:

Building capacity to improve oral health
$8.2 million over four years ($2.0 million in 2011-12)
These funds will be used to provide denture care to seniors who are unable to access public dental care due to long waiting lists. Funding will also go towards supporting oral hygienists to provide services to residents in pension-level Supported Residential Services across Victoria.

Improving the oral hygiene of children aged 0-3 years
$2 million over four years ($0.5 million in 2011-12)
The Healthy Families, Healthy Smiles program will target at-risk families and build the capacity of health workers to promote good oral health.

Providing more graduate opportunities for dental clinicians within the public sector
$3.3 million over four years ($0.3 million in 2011-12)
Funding will be used to attract dental clinicians to the public sector by expanding the Oral Health Therapists Graduate Program to all graduating dental clinicians. Graduates will be placed in areas with the highest workforce shortages and more support and training will be provided to supervising clinicians.

Assisting with the relocation of dental clinicians to rural areas
$1.1 million over four years ($0.3 million in 2011-12)
These funds will be provided to help dental clinicians relocate from metropolitan locations to rural and regional communities.

Delivering three new mobile dental clinics in regional and country Victoria
$4.8 million over four years ($1.0 million in 2011-12)
Three new mobile dental clinics will serve rural and regional Victoria. One clinic will be delivered each year, starting next financial year. There will be additional investment in service delivery and incentive payments for clinicians to work in the mobile dental clinics.