More than 1000 Highlanders are ‘handing over their savings in agony’ to access private dental care as Scottish Labour says ‘this is what privatisation looks like’
More than 1000 dental patients in the Highlands have given up trying to get an NHS dentist and stead have opted to go private in a bid to seek treatment leading Scottish Labour to say they are “handing over their savings in agony”.
Scottish Labour’s spokesperson for dentistry, Paul Sweeney, said: “This is what privatisation looks like – those who can, pay for a private dentist; those who can’t, suffer without access to an NHS dentist when they need it.”
In total, new figures show that at least 36,818 Scots have left an NHS dentist for private dental care since 2019, including 1034 in the NHS Highland area as the crisis in dentistry accelerates.
The issue featured in the recent general election campaign with numerous candidates saying that the north is at risk of leaving patients out of pocket for procedures.
A Freedom of Information request by Scottish Labour reveals a huge increase in the numbers of patients going private in the last four years – though the party says it is “unlikely to represent the full scale of the trend” as some numbers are unavailable.
In the Highlands, 77 people went private in 2019; 205 in 2020; 79 in 2021; 164 in 2022; 369 in 2023 and already this year 140 people have opted out of NHS dental care – a total of 1034.
The problem is nationwide with Greater Glasgow & Clyde Health Board seeing an exodus of 16,336 over the same period, closely followed by Lanarkshire Health Board which recorded 8340 patients dropping off the NHS register go private.
The impact on patients could be significant as NHS dental care fees are capped, private dental health fees are not, where a filling may be four times more expensive.
Scottish Labour’s spokesperson for dentistry, Paul Sweeney, said: “The fact that patients are suddenly paying quadruple the cost for dentistry in a cost-of-living crisis suggests Scots are handing over their life savings and pensions just to get the treatment they desperately need to relieve themselves of severe pain.
“This is what privatisation looks like – those who can, pay for a private dentist; those who can’t, suffer without access to an NHS dentist when they need it.
“A number of my constituents in Glasgow are suffering in agony without access to an NHS dentist and I know how desperate they are for relief from their dental pain – but they should not have to choose between paying for a private dentist or having no dentist at all.
“NHS dental care has rotted away under the SNP when we need to be encouraging more dentists to work for the NHS so that everyone is able to register as an NHS patient.
“Scottish Labour wants to end the postcode lottery for access to NHS dentistry so that everyone can get the treatment they need when they need it.”
