CDCP will make a difference to lives of many

St. Boniface – St. Vital

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 17/07/2024 (732 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

When the government introduced the Canadian Dental Care Plan its goal was to help ease financial barriers to accessing oral health care. Once the plan is fully implemented in 2025, up to nine million uninsured Canadians with a net family income to less than $90,000 will benefit.

So far, more than 2.1 million eligible Canadians have registered for the CDCP. They have received welcome packages clearly indicating their coverage start dates. In May 2024, the first round of applicants were able to access dental services. Each individual’s coverage start date depends on when they applied. Since May 1, over 250,000 Canadians having received care.

Experts and dental associations from every province and territory have been consulted. My colleagues, Health Minister Mark Holland, along with Jean-Yves Duclos before him, have personally met with each association to consult on the program.

The CDCP works similarly to other private insurance plans your dentist likely uses when direct billing private insurance plans. Patients present their CDCP cards and dentists simply bill the CDCP’s contracted insurance administrator (SunLife) directly as they would any other insurance provider and receive payment within 48 hours of the service. Many Canadians now covered by the CDCP cannot afford the up-front costs of these services, which is why we have a direct-billing system that many dentists use in many parts of the country.

Compensation to dentists under the CDCP is based on the CDCP fee guide. Similar to fee guides used by private, employer-sponsored dental plans, the CDCP pays dentists, on average, about 83 per cent of the provincial dental associations’ suggested fee.

Take, for example, new patients enrolled in the CDCP who get a procedure for which the Manitoba Dental Association 2024 Fee Guide suggests a $100 charge. The CDCP will cover, on average, $83. The formerly uninsured patients will now pay $17 instead of $100, a huge improvement in affordability.

Canadians covered by the CDCP can see the provider of their choice, as long as their provider agrees to bill Sun Life directly and accept payment for covered services delivered to the CDCP patient. Minister Holland listened to dental professionals and announced an alternative pathway for those who prefer not to register with the CDCP. Since July 8, they can now treat CDCP patients without formally enrolling as CDCP participating providers. With close to 12,000 providers already signed up and more joining daily, all oral health practitioners in Canada can now offer services on a claim-by-claim basis, accommodating those who prefer not to sign up formally but still wish to treat CDCP patients.

The expansion of dental care is a generational achievement in public health we can be proud of. While oral health care providers are free to reject as patients those who choose to register for the CDCP, or to charge more than the CDCP established fees, we hope that a majority of them, whose work is critical in making a difference in the lives of Canadians, will help us build a foundation for more equitable access to oral health care – and make a difference in the lives of many Canadians.