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Dental Treatment Services Scheme: Under the Dental Treatment Services Scheme (DTSS), adults who are medical card holders are entitled to free dental care. Treatment is free to the patient, and privately practising dentists who take part in this scheme claim back the cost of services provided from the Primary Care Reimbursement Scheme (PCRS) in the HSE on a fee-for-service basis.
In August 2009, just over one million people were entitled to the DTSS. Its budget in 2009 is €85 million. As it is a demand-led scheme, it is impossible to accurately estimate the numbers who will avail of the scheme and the cost of it. These have increased significantly since 2008 as more adults are entitled to this scheme, due to the increasing number of medical card holders.
