Ending Wiltshire's Dental Desert
Since being elected, I have fought to improve access to NHS dentistry in our part of Wiltshire and end our county's dental deserts.
NHS Dentists are a vital part of our community. Under the current system, dentists are losing money when they provide NHS care. It is no wonder they are leaving the NHS. I am pushing the Government to fix this and get NHS dentists back in Wiltshire.
Back in July, I wrote to constituents asking them to make their voice heard on the Government's NHS Dentistry Contract consultation.
The consultation – “NHS dentistry contract: quality and payment reforms” – proposes reforms to how dentists are paid, how services are delivered, and how access and quality are measured.
These reforms could have a major impact on how NHS dentistry works for patients across Chippenham, Royal Wootton Bassett, Calne, Corsham, and our surrounding towns and villages.
Never one to let the Government rest on its laurels I have been questioning the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care on when his department plans to respond to feedback provided in its consultation. Disappointingly I was only met with the reply that “The Government is considering the outcomes of the consultation and will publish a response in due course.”
At a time when millions of people across the country are going without basic dental care this lack of action from the Government is simply not good enough. For the government to build a contract that actually works, it needs to be funded and designed to ensure everyone needing an urgent or emergency appointment can get one, that no area is without available NHS dentistry and that appointments are guaranteed for all those who need a dental check before commencing surgery, chemotherapy or transplant.
After hearing your feedback, I am pushing the Government to ensure that any reform to the dental contract encourages and incentivises dentists to take on NHS patients. This is the first step in putting an end to ‘dental deserts’ that can devastate communities like ours.
My Liberal Democrat colleagues and I are campaigning to guarantee access to an NHS dentist for everyone needing urgent and emergency care, putting an end to DIY dentistry and ‘dental deserts’ for good. To address these issues the Liberal Democrats are pushing for the Government to create a Dental Rescue Package that brings dentists back to the NHS from the private sector by fixing the broken NHS dental contract and using flexible commissioning to meet patient needs.
I will continue to push the Government on this vital issue until rural communities like ours are given the standard of care that we deserve rather than being treated as an afterthought.
