Unfortunately the British government is trying to privatise dentistry and is deliberately paying dentists less than the actual cost of treatment so that (very reluctantly) they give up on the NHS and go private to get a decent income.
Our first NHS dentist in Belfast retired and sold her practice to another dentist who promptly went private. Our second NHS dental practice has just announced that the whole practice of seven dentists is going private from the end of July. We've found a new NHS dentist, but how long will it be before he goes private as well?
Our current dentist's charges for private treatment will be hefty - for example, new patient examination £75 ($95), fillings £80 to £120 ($102 to $152). There's no dental insurance, only a scheme to spread your payments rather than pay them upfront.
The situation is worse in England, where many people can't even find an NHS dentist willing to take on new patients. Or an available dentist is so far away (like 50 miles), it's impractical to sign on with them.
There are reports of people in horrendous pain extracting their own teeth, or using over-the-counter emergency fillings, such is their desperation. But the government does nothing to make NHS treatment more viable for dentists and is happy to let NHS dentistry (the proud achievement of Health Secretary Aneurin Bevan in 1948) slowly collapse.
