According to official figures published by the Government, a shocking number of people across West Essex do not have access to an NHS dentist.
After all the taxes we pay for the NHS, this is a disgrace. There needs to be a series of reforms to ensure more patients can go to an NHS dentist, rather than force people to go private or miss out on treatment completely.
The latest NHS figures show that 53 per cent of the population across the West Essex Primary Care Trust area (which includes Harlow and Epping) have not been seen by an NHS dentist in the last two years. The number of people seen by an NHS dentist in the area has dropped from 141,558 in March 2006 to 129,498 last December.
That is why, I strongly welcome Conservative proposals to improve NHS dentistry announced by Shadow Health Secretary Andrew Lansley, particularly the proposal to create new incentives for dentists to spend more time on preventative dental care, improving oral health and reducing long-term costs.
I believe that we also need to restore access to an NHS dentist for the one million patients who have lost it under Labours' failed system, by removing costly bureaucracy and cutting out waste.
After all the taxes we pay for the NHS, this is a disgrace. There needs to be a series of reforms to ensure more patients can go to an NHS dentist, rather than force people to go private or miss out on treatment completely.
The latest NHS figures show that 53 per cent of the population across the West Essex Primary Care Trust area (which includes Harlow and Epping) have not been seen by an NHS dentist in the last two years. The number of people seen by an NHS dentist in the area has dropped from 141,558 in March 2006 to 129,498 last December.
That is why, I strongly welcome Conservative proposals to improve NHS dentistry announced by Shadow Health Secretary Andrew Lansley, particularly the proposal to create new incentives for dentists to spend more time on preventative dental care, improving oral health and reducing long-term costs.
I believe that we also need to restore access to an NHS dentist for the one million patients who have lost it under Labours' failed system, by removing costly bureaucracy and cutting out waste.
This could be done by using money currently spent on carrying out unnecessary treatments to reintroduce dental screening for children in schools and ensuring that taxpayer-trained dentists work for the NHS for at least five years.
The Labour Government is leaving a terrible dental legacy which will be difficult to fix. A million people have lost their NHS dentist in just three years, and 53% of the population across west Essex, are without an NHS dentist.
Dentists are fed up with the flawed system that Labour have introduced. As a result, local residents to have to travel miles to see an NHS dentist, or else pay to go private to receive the treatment they need.
We have to help restore access to an NHS dentist, and spend more on preventative treatment to help avoid tooth decay. We need to tackle the worrying number of people needing to have their teeth pulled out.
The Labour Government is leaving a terrible dental legacy which will be difficult to fix. A million people have lost their NHS dentist in just three years, and 53% of the population across west Essex, are without an NHS dentist.
Dentists are fed up with the flawed system that Labour have introduced. As a result, local residents to have to travel miles to see an NHS dentist, or else pay to go private to receive the treatment they need.
We have to help restore access to an NHS dentist, and spend more on preventative treatment to help avoid tooth decay. We need to tackle the worrying number of people needing to have their teeth pulled out.
P.S. Further details about the Conservative Proposals to improve NHS Dentist services can be found HERE.
