Madam, – I am angry at the Minister for Social Welfare and Family Affairs Mary Hanafin’s comments regarding the abolition of treatment benefits in the Budget.
If, as a contracting dentist,I wish to discontinue my contract with her department I must give the Minister three months’ notice in writing. I received a letter from her department on December 21st signalling her intention to effectively discontinue the scheme on December 31st. This was the first official notification I received as to how she intends to wind up the scheme and how to deal with patients who are currently in treatment or with patients who may have booked appointments in the New Year and are expecting to avail of treatment benefits.
As result of this action, non-medical-card holders who have finished primary school education have access to no State-sponsored dental treatment.
There is a lot of confusion among the public as to what their status might be in 2010, with a lack of any clear information coming from the Minister. I have not been in a position until this week to advise my patients.
The phonelines to the treatment benefits section of the Minister’s department have been constantly engaged since the budgetary announcement, as understandably the department has been overwhelmed with inquiries from members of the public and dentists alike.
I feel she is being very unjust to the dental profession in accusing us of trying to circumvent a budgetary decision when demand for this scheme is patient-led; it is our hard-hit patients who are trying to avail of the last few days of the scheme.
I believe she is also misleading the general public into believing that this scheme is being suspended for one year only, as most of us realise that due to poor fiscal management over the past number of years this Government has plunged the country into financial crisis from which we have no hope of emerging in 12 months.
If perhaps this Government could try being honest with us all and give us a reasonable period of time to wind up this scheme, this would avoid this unnecessary slurring of the dental profession in the media. – Yours, etc,