Greens propose a universal dental scheme

The Greens have announced a plan to provide dental care to everyone.  Called Denticare, the plan would add dental treatment to the Medicare Benefits schedule, meaning that dentists would bulk-bill dental services like doctors do.

Announced by health spokesman Senator Richard Di Natale (pictured), the plan aims to:
 • Provide dental treatment covered by Medicare. Phased in over five years, Medicare would cover preventive and restorative dental treatment so that everybody can afford to go to the dentist.
 • Start with the most disadvantaged. Low income earners, children and teenagers, pensioners and concession card holders would be among the first to access dental treatment under Medicare, before rolling out the scheme to everybody.
 • Ease pressure on the public system through investment in public dental services, allowing them to treat complex cases and hard-to-reach sectors of the community without waiting lists skyrocketing.