Dental Into Medicare: Two Thirds Of Australian Dentists Support It, New Survey Reports
“A survey of Australian dental practitioners has found roughly two-thirds support the idea of expanding Medicare to include more dental services. The vast majority of dental care in Australia is provided by the private sector and predominantly funded out of patients’ own pockets.”
– ABC.net.au
More Dental Practitioners Want Medicare Expansion To Include Dental Services Than Those That Don’t
A reading of this report indicates that most dentists support a more complex arrangement involving government subsidies for certain patients rather than simply free dental for all. That those that can afford it will continue to pay out of pocket with their private health insurance and those below the economic threshold will qualify for government support. I think that the majority of dentists would like to see the best of both worlds operating for the benefit of all Australians. Of course, the politics in Australia may have something to say about this too.
“Among the nearly 450 professionals who participated, including dentists, oral health therapists, and dental hygienists, support was strongest for a means-tested and capped dental scheme. That would mean patients would be eligible for subsidised care based on their income, and only covered up to a certain financial limit.”
– Olivia Willis, ABC, May 2025
The Politics Of The Inclusion Of Dental Into Medicare
The Greens political party went to the federal election with a policy pushing for the full inclusion of dental into Medicare. This was costed by the Parliamentary Budget Office at some $12 billion per year. Sounds expensive but, of course, everything in the budget is a matter of what is chosen as economically prioritised over other things. Nuclear submarines on the never, never? Nuclear power stations purported by the LNP Coalition? The budget is a wish list made real by hard choices. Legacy media reports about the loss of seats and their leader Adam Bandt, suffered by the Greens, may seem to put the kibosh on this push for dental into Medicare but in actual fact the Greens in the Senate have increased their bargaining position.
“Labor is expected to further grow its numbers in the Senate, allowing it to pass legislation with only the support of the Greens in a power shift that could sideline previously influential crossbenchers such as David Pocock.”
– The Guardian
The politics played by Labor, most recently, has seen welfare initiatives like the power bill subsidies applied across the board to all Australians rather than targeted relief. This has been by design to avoid being seen as the party of minority causes and to appeal to the mainstream of voters. Middle class welfare has long been a vote winner down-under.
Mark Butler, the Health Minister in the Albanese federal government, has said in public that Labor had “ambition to bring dental into Medicare”, however, not in the immediate future.
“The average Liberal voter is a man in his 70s and the average Australian is a 37-year-old woman.”
It is always interesting to observe what we the Australian people are willing to put up with as the status quo and how that can change over time. Will younger Aussie adults, who are suffering financial challenges like never before in an Australia which economically favours older wealthier folk, demand real economic relief now? The decimation of the Liberal Party recording its lowest electoral result ever on the back of younger people and women deserting them is a clear sign of the shift in power at the ballot box. The average Liberal voter is a man in his 70s and the average Australian is a 37-year-old woman. This equation does not add up to anything good for the Libs going forward.
Two thirds of Australian dentists support dental into Medicare.
“A total of 447 dental practitioners completed the survey. Overall, 64.7% supported expanding Medicare to include more dental services, with higher support amongst females, non-dentists (oral health therapists, dental therapists, dental hygienists and dental prosthetists), those with more experience, and practitioners in regional/remote areas or the public sector. Respondents reported a significant proportion of their patients faced challenges affording dental care. “
– Online Library
A brief analysis of this snapshot of survey respondents tells us that it is those facing more of the public that have given the green light and their support to this proposal. Regional dental practitioners, where service choices are far more limited will witness first hand the affordability issues facing their constituents. Women in the dental profession are likewise more likely to encounter the frontline of customers not being able to pay for procedures and settling for second best instead. By this I mean the front counter receptionist who is most often female. This is fundamentally about community and not just about the profession and what is economically best for it.
The whole picture has to be considered and the health of the nation.
Politics Impacts Upon Our Budgetary Choices
The rejection of Trump’s America and Trumpian politics down-under has seen the demise of the divisive Peter Dutton. The former leader of the Liberal Party lost not only the election but his seat of Dickson too. This has been a trend in the Liberal Party with former PM John Howard losing Bennelong in 2007 and former PM Tony Abbott defeated in Warringah in 2019. The Libs move to the hard Right side of politics has not been a vote winner in Australia. Independent members replaced these long serving Coalition politicians in their formerly safe seats. There are no safe seats left in politics, according to pundits in the 21C. The reason we might emphasise the politics in Australia at the moment is because it impacts upon what we, via our elected representatives and senators, value as important. Big shifts like dental into Medicare are dependent upon such changes in the political status quo. It takes time and consistent lobbying for big shifts to occur such as billion dollar investments into the health of Australians.
Australian Dental Association Champions Senior Dental Relief
“The Australian Dental Association has long championed the introduction of a SDBS to provide affordable care to older Australians who need it most. The statistics are confronting: Australians over 65 have, on average, lost 14 teeth, and approximately 25% avoid certain foods due to dental issues. With 16% of the population currently over 65—a figure projected to double by 2062—the ADA emphasises the urgency of implementing targeted and sustainable funding for this vulnerable group of Australians.
ADA members see firsthand the impact of poor oral health on older Australians—many patients are missing teeth, and surveys reveal that one in four seniors avoid certain foods due to dental issues. As practitioners on the frontlines, members know a large portion of this group do not currently access dental care often enough. Without targeted and sustainable funding, these issues will only worsen, which is why the ADA is calling for urgent government action to ensure older Australians can access essential dental care.”
– ADA.org.au
There is a shift happening in Australia, both within the dental profession and among the wider population, the ‘care economy’ is front and centre in 2025 and beyond. Governments taking care of those who can no longer afford the cost of taking care of themselves in real terms. It is undeniable that certain things within the economy, like dental care, have become prohibitively expensive for a too large chunk of the populace. We can no longer just look away, as human beings suffer when we are supposed to be one of the wealthiest nations on earth. It is not enough to condemn some folk as not measuring up and undeserving of care, as right wing politics have long proscribed. The centrist Australian people will not stand for such heartless stuff anymore. Oral care is important and medical science is learning this more every day. If we neglect the oral health of individuals it leads directly to far more serious and terminal conditions. It is time to make oral care a priority for all.
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