Coalition retains Medicare Dental Scheme
18th September, 2008
The Liberal and National Parties have defeated a second attempt by the Rudd Labor Government to abolish Medicare funding for private dental treatment, Federal Member for Wide Bay Warren Truss said today.The Coalition used its numbers in the Senate to keep the Medicare Dental Scheme open.
“The Rudd Government tried to axe this program in its very first budget, and is warning dentists not to accept patients under the scheme.
“Health Minister Nicola Roxon wrote to dentists earlier this year and threatened that the Government would not meet its obligation to provide funding under the Medicare Dental Scheme for patients enrolled after April 2008.
“This threat was designed to intimidate people from enrolling in the scheme and could have left thousands of others with huge dental bills.”
The Labor Government’s position on dental health makes a mockery of Kevin Rudd’s election promises.
“Before the election Kevin Rudd said that when it comes to health, the buck would stop with him. What he didn’t say was that the bucks for dental health for people with chronic medical conditions would just stop - in his very first budget,” Mr Truss said.
“Before the election, Kevin Rudd also promised to end the blame game over dental funding. What he didn’t tell people was that he proposed to end the blame game by abolishing federal funding for successful dental health programs.
“The former Coalition Government introduced the Medicare Dental Scheme which provides up to $4,250 over two years to people with chronic conditions to access private dental treatment,” Mr Truss said.
“The scheme is particularly important for seniors in local communities where accessing State Government funded public dental treatment in hospitals is nearly impossible,” Mr Truss said.
“The Coalition will do all it can to ensure that vital programs, including the Medicare Dental Scheme, remain open and accessible for people who need them the most.”
