Wiltshire MP says NHS Dental reform must be included in NHS 10 year plan

Chippenham’s Liberal Democrat MP, Sarah Gibson, said that NHS Dental reform must be included in the NHS 10 year plan expected to be announced by the Government on Thursday (3rd July).

The Government has said that the NHS 10 year plan will set the direction for the health service over the next decade and implement major reforms aimed at modernising the NHS. 

Chippenham’s Liberal Democrat MP, Sarah Gibson has called on the Government to include NHS dental reform in their NHS 10 year plan. Sarah said that it would greatly improve people’s access to NHS dentists in Chippenham, which has been decimated following the closure of Hathaway Dental Surgery last year.

The local MP also called on the Government to address social care which is currently going through a separate review only set to be completed in three years time. Sarah Gibson MP said the Government had “refused to get to grips” and called on Ministers to complete the review by the end of the year to fix the underlying issues in the NHS caused by social care delays.

Liberal Democrat MP for Chippenham, Calne, Corsham, Lyneham and Royal Wootton Bassett, Sarah Gibson said:

“The 10 year plan must rebuild local health services across our part of Wiltshire and the cornerstone of that must be reforming the NHS dental contract.

“After years of Conservative neglect, we simply cannot wait any longer. Dentists are crying out for action on how they get paid to provide NHS services. The Government has delayed reform for too long – a real kick in the teeth for my constituents, desperate for affordable dental care. 

“It will transform health services here in Wiltshire. In the current system, dentists are losing money when providing certain NHS services because of an outdated funding model. If we lose more dentists out of the NHS system, it will be very difficult to get them back even if the contract is improved. Action is urgently needed.

“Since day one of being elected, I have been pushing time and again for the Government to announce their plan to reform NHS dentistry. Wiltshire is a dental desert and the Government so far, has done little to address this.

“If the Government finally gets to grips with fixing the crisis in NHS dentistry it will be an important step in rebuilding our local NHS but it must be done hand in hand with reforms to social care. 

“The Government has so far refused to tackle this issue by not completing their review for three years. The Government must move faster if we are to break from the years of decline under the Conservatives.”