§ Mrs. Chalkerasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what action an individual National Health Service dental patient may take where his panel dentist refuses to carry out necessary dental repairs such as tooth capping because of inadequate fees allowed by the Government for the same.
§ Mr. MoyleNo patient is on a dentist's "panel"; a dentist's obligation to a patient is discharged at the end of each course of treatment. A patient who is refused NHS treatment of any kind by a dentist should seek another dentist on the family practitioner committee's list who may be willing to provide it.
So far as fees are concerned, these are reviewed regularly and are designed to reimburse dentists for the average case, the intention being that simple and straightforward cases compensate for the more time-consuming and complex ones. Fees currently paid for items of treatment do not fully reflect what dentists are paid overall. In addition to remuneration through fees, a dentist's gross fee earnings are augmented by a further 3 per cent. to cover increased expenses. Furthermore, most dentists are entitled to the cash supplement awards of £312 and £208 per annum as recommended by the Review Body on Doctors' and Dentists' Remuneration.