Productivity Commission report targets public dental services

The Productivity Commission has called for the private sector to be given a greater role in providing key government services, with public dental services listed as one of six priority areas.

In a preliminary report, the commission says services dental care could be improved if it was opened up to market competition.

Other priority areas include social housing, indigenous affairs, some public hospital services and palliative care.

AFL Grand Final public holiday

Friday 30 September - the day preceding the AFL Grand Final - is a public holiday in Victoria.

ADAVB Members who intend to be open for business that day may need to check the penalty rates applicable for staff working on a public holiday.

The ADA HR Advisory Service can assist members needing further details (ph 1300 232 462 or log in to the members' area at www.ada.org.au).

Poll shows that private health insurers put profits before patients

A public opinion poll shows that almost 80% of Australians strongly agree or agree with the statement “private health insurers put profits before patients”.

Recent Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) data shows private health funds managed to boost premium revenues by 6.4% and profit before tax by 8.9% in the year to June. But reimbursements to their members rose by just 5.3%.

The ReachTEL polling of 1144 residents found that 69.2% have considered downgrading or dropping their policy in the past 12 months because it does not represent good value for money.

Some 75.4% of people aged 18-34 years of age have considered downgrading or dropping their policy in the past 12 months. This supports findings from APRA showing a decline in membership from 47.4% to 47.0% in the year to June 2016.

The polling was commissioned by the Medical Technology Association of Australia.

The Child Dental Benefits Schedule is protected

The Child Dental Benefits Schedule (CDBS) will continue following the Federal Government agreeing to remove its wind up provisions from the Omnibus Bill.

The Government accepted Labor’s support of the financial Bill following negotiations which included protecting the dental scheme.

The Australian Dental Association welcomed the announcement. ADA conducted an extensive and sustained campaign for the retention of the CDBS which was to have been replaced by another program that would have increased waiting times for eligible patients.

In a media statement, Opposition Leader Mr Shorten (pictured), Shadow Treasurer Mr Bowen, and the Shadow Minister for Finance, Mr Chalmers, said Labor’s support “ensures access to dental care for children by protecting Labor’s Child Dental Benefits Scheme”.

Last ditch effort to save dental scheme

With the resumption of Federal Parliament, the Australian Dental Association has stepped up its lobbying efforts to save the Child Dental Benefits Schedule (CDBS).

The benefits of the scheme, which helps disadvantaged children who need dental treatment and has a focus on prevention, has been highlighted in a story about the President of the Australian Dental Association Victorian Branch, Dr Andrew Gikas (pictured), using the CDBS to treat the children of one family.

Debate on the Budget Savings (Omnibus) Bill 2016, which ends funding for the scheme and introduces the Child and Adult Public Dental Scheme, will resume this week.

ADA says that the CDBS has provided dental treatment to more than 1.5 million children and argues that its public dental services’ replacement will be under-resourced.

Boost for dental care treatment in rural and remote communities

The ADAVB has welcomed today's $2 million dental care funding announcement by the Victorian Government. As part of this funding, an extra 220 Victorians in rural communities will be able to access dental care through the Flying Doctor Dental Clinic, thanks to a new mobile dental clinic van.

The Flying Doctor Dental Clinic is a partnership between Royal Flying Doctor Service Victoria, Dental Health Services Victoria and the Australian Dental Association Victorian Branch.

More information and media release
Mobile Dental Care in Victoria

Sugar Film supports Indigenous health program

The man who made the acclaimed documentary The Sugar Film has used funds from the movie to establish a health program in outback South Australia for indigenous communities.

Following establishment of the Mai Wiru Sugar Challenge Foundation, Damon Gameau recently returned to the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Lands with two nutritionists to develop an education program on diet and sugar.

The program involves demonstrations on how to read food labels to detect “hidden” sugar and the installation of “thumbs-up” and “thumbs-down” signs on shelving to show good and bad food options. There are also cooking sessions on healthy foods that can be sourced from the store in Pipalyatjara, a tiny town, 550 km south-west from Alice Springs.

The project is featured on Australian Story. Photo courtesy of Australian Story.

Woman's death in Mexico sparks concerns about medical tourism

Warnings about the risk of medical tourism have been sparked following the death of a Gold Coast woman who died while undergoing cosmetic surgery in Mexico.

Eva Sarmonikas, 29, died in a hospital while undergoing surgery in Mexicali, Baja California, during surgery. Her family said in an initial statement on Facebook that that she suffered cardiac arrest during the procedure but an autopsy found that her lung was punctured four times.

Channel 7's Sunday Night program highlighted the case. The incident drew a warning from the Australasian College of Cosmetic Surgeons with spokesman Dr Anoop Rastogi saying: "In Australia, the medical profession as a whole is well regulated and so is cosmetic surgery. The problem with that is Australians are very comfortable with the safety of it and they think that's the case everywhere, and that's the problem with medical tourism."

Similarly, the Australian Dental Association warns people about the risks of having dental work done “on the cheap” overseas.