§ Lord Colwynasked Her Majesty's Government:
How many patients were registered with (a) the general dental services; and (b) the community dental services in each year since 1990, showing the figure both as a total and as a percentage of the population. [HL5450]
§ Lord Hunt of Kings HeathArrangements are now in place to ensure that patients can gain access to National Health Service services by calling NHS Direct. this means that even if a patient is not registered with a dentist it will still be possible for that patient to access all forms of dentistry that are provided by the NHS.
153WAThe number of patients registered in the general dental service and the percentage of patients registered per population for September each year from 1992 to 2001 is shown in the table.
Comparable data for 1990 and 1991 are not available as registrations were introduced only in October 1990 and registration numbers had not yet had time to reach consistent levels.
Registration numbers were reduced by the shortening of the registration period for new registrations from September 1996. The adult registration period changed from 24 months to 15 months. The child registration period changed to 15 months; previously child registrations expired at the end of the following calendar year. Hence, registration numbers after 1997 are not comparable to the numbers for earlier years.
The data are also affected by improvements in the methods used for the removal of duplicate registration records which were first employed in 1993 by the Dental Practice Board.
Patients with the community dental service (CDS) are not registered for dental treatment therefore registration data for the CDS is not available.
General dental service: Number of patients registered1 and percentage of the population registered, 1992 to 2001 England At 30 September Number of patients registered2(millions) Percentage of population3 registered 1992 28.7 59 1993 28.9 60 1994 28.4 58 1995 27.3 56 1996 26.8 55 1997 26.8 54 1998 23.5 47 1999 23.5 47 2000 23.7 47 2001 23.6 47 1 Based on the number of registrations at 30 September each year. 2 The number registered is affected by the shortening of the registration period to 15 months from September 1996. 3 Office for National Statistics mid-year adult population estimates used to calculate percentage of patients registered.
§ Lord Colwynasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether they will list the number of calls made each month since the introduction of NHS Direct by people seeking dental treatment; and how many of these patients (a) were treated on a single visit basis; or (b) became permanently registered with the suggested dentist. [HL5451]
§ Lord Hunt of Kings HeathThe following table shows the number of telephone calls to NHS Direct from patients seeking dental treatment from November 2001 to April 2002. The percentage of calls meeting local distance standards for referral to dental services is also included.
No information is available about the dental services which these callers subsequently received.
154WA
NHS Direct: Total number of dental related calls and percentage of calls meeting the Prime Minister's pledge distance standards, November 2001 to April 2002 Month Number of Calls1 Percentage within distance standards November-01 10,900 94 December-01 10,000 95 January-02 13,100 94 February-02 10,300 93 March-02 12,900 92 April-02 15,500 93 Notes:
1 Information from some call centres is not available in some months due to data-processing problems.
§ Lord Colwynasked Her Majesty's Government:
What is the average cost of a course of dental treatment within the general dental services for (a) adults; and (b) children exempt from payment. [HL5452]
§ Lord Hunt of Kings HeathThe average cost per course of dental treatment in the general dental service (GDS) for adult patients exempt from paying dental charges for England was £53.17 in 2001–02. This excludes patients who are partially exempt from paying dental charges. Including the partly exempt patients, the average cost was £53.45 for 2001–02.
The average cost per course of dental treatment in the GDS for children in 2001–02 was £34.53 for England. Remuneration for courses of treatment involving an examination only are covered by the registration payment so are excluded from this average cost.
§ Lord Colwynasked Her Majesty's Government:
What is the average adult patient contribution towards the cost of dental treatment within the general dental services. [HL5453]
§ Lord Hunt of Kings HeathThe average charge-payers contribution rate per course of treatment in the general dental service was £23.28 in 2001–02 in England. This figure includes patients with an HC3 certificate for partial remission from dental charges.
People who fall into the following categories are exempt from charges.
- Aged under 18.
- Aged under 19 and in full-time education.
- Receiving income support or income-based jobseekers allowance.
- Pregnant or has borne a child within the last 12 calendar months.
- Receiving working families tax credits or disabled person's tax credits, which are not reduced by more than £72.20 per week.
- Hold a current HC2 exemption certificate.
Those people who do not fall into these categories may be able to receive partial help through the low income scheme.
155WA
§ Lord Colwynasked Her Majesty's Government:
When they expect to publish the Department of Health's report Options for Change; and whether they have decided the locations of the 10 demonstration sites. [HL5454]
§ Lord Hunt of Kings HeathWe intend to publish theOptions for Change report on NHS dentistry shortly.
Options for Change will propose that new approaches are tested, assessed and fine tuned at a local level through demonstration sites to provide a better deal for patients, dentists and the NHS before any national decisions are made. Demonstration sites will be run through the Modernisation Agency, which will be inviting formal expressions of interests following the publication of the Options for Change report.