Dentist going Private

Very true MOnica

We’ve always have to pay and it is very,very expensive. We have insurance but it doesn’t cover half of it. Typically $200-$300 per visit and sometimes a lot more. I had a root canal and crown which cost $3000. He is a really good dentist,though and I am dreading him retiring.

BlueBelle

My NHS dentist takes all of 2 minutes to look in my mouth and declare me ok for another 6 months or at my last check up fira year I take longer payer at the desk but at least I know I ve still got one if I have an emergency

Same here! I haven't had any work done for years and I was told I only need check ups once a year. I honestly wonder whether it's worth it, except (as you say) if I had an emergency, I guess I'd be treated.

Oh my, I hadn't expected so many comments. It seems we are all in the same boat.
I guess I will have many questions when I chat with my dentist such as..... How much is a check up and polish on pay as you go, for comparison.
Thank you everyone.

Our dentist is private, has been for quite some time.

Well worth keeping our teeth healthy.

This is worrying. I had a check up at my NHS dentists last week and they’ve had a complete make over. Place has been refurbished and they’re all wearing very smart uniforms. My first thought was ‘they’re going private’. They also, at my check up, x rayed my teeth and I thought to myself, they’re checking for any problems now so they can fix them while I’m still NHS but don’t want to tell me that. I was hoping that, if they did go private they would still see current NHS patients but I fear the worst. They used to combine NHS with private work but the people that ran the practice have all retired. I thought all children up to a certain age still had free dental treatment? My grandson missed out on having braces because he needed them during lockdown and to get them done within the framework needed to correct his misalignment meant they had to pay privately and it has cost them thousands. DH has a private dentist and a broken tooth has already cost him hundreds: I dread to think how much it’s going to cost to provide a bridge or a false tooth when he has the tooth removed next week. How many health problems are going to be missed because people can’t afford to have regular check ups? And gum disease can result in heart problems too.

The two tier dental business is a template for what could happen to medical treatment if the Tories mess up the NHS even more than they have done through underfunding and limiting doctor and nurse training places. We have a relatively small private medical sector now but it could easily mushroom into a majority service like private dentistry. Those who can't afford 'plans' or pay as you go would be consigned to the minority state service (if they could find it just as people find it difficult to find NHS dentists now). I don't trust the Tories with the NHS. Too many of their MPs seem to have investment in private sector health activities.

Well done Annsixty!!
I used to think my teeth were ok but receding gums, abscesses, and recently 2 lower front teeth broke in half on biting into a baguette!
So it's a plate for me now.
Someone I know, in her 80s has just remortgaged her house to pay for implants!
I'm not as vain as that.

Our dentist went private about 15years ago. No nhs dentists nearby. We joined denplan at £28 each per month covers most treatments. We have rubbish teeth. I feel so sorry for folk who don’t have the money - toothache is one of the worst of pains.

Been with our dentist for years , before lockdown they were NHS but on reopening we discovered it was difficult getting appts and they started doing private patients . I had a bit of a nagging tooth at my last check up and she said the filling was cracked and they'd get me in ASAP to do it . Different story when I went to reception to book in the appt and she said there was nothing free for 6 months .
I then sat in the waiting room while my husband had his check up and heard her answer the phone and tell someone they weren't taking anymore new NHS patients and she offered the caller an appt for the very next week .
As existing NHS patients at the practice we are realising private patients are being given priority. It's a bit disappointing as we've kept our 6 monthly check up appts religiously . Our adult son needed a root canal and was told it would be an 8 month wait but they could do it privately the following week . He paid as he didn't want to leave it that long and he can afford it but ìts an expensive luxury for a lot of people . How are we supposed to look after our dental health . I'm thinking I might open a savings account just for dental emergencies and put in a regular amount.

In my town there is a two tier system, which means that some people who have managed to stay with the same dentist for years get NHS treatment, whereas those who have moved house, had a dentist move away, return or die, or whose dentist has gone private have to pay. It seems very unfair. If we really can't have the NHS service we've paid into for years, I'd rather see everyone get free checkups and hygienist treatment, with a lower charge for other work, paid by everyone. That seems much fairer than some getting it free (or almost free) and others paying huge sums or going without.

My dentist actually suggested we save regularly instead of paying dental insurance.
She said to keep doing it though as if you need major work it won't be cheap.

My last set of work was £280... but I do have rubbish teeth inspite of being super-careful.
My dad's closest friend taught dentistry when I was a child and insisted I had fluoride mouthwash from about age 7!
I have been every 6 months forever. I think I'd have no teeth by now if I hadn't been.

Now we know how our dentistry affect our heart and general health I don't think it's worth skimping on it if at all possible.

M0nica

All these thread full of people waxing hysterical over the NHS being privatised, which it isn't

Seems to me they would be of better use shouting long and hard over the de facto privitisation of the dental service, where we are already at the point where most of us have no choice other than to pay for dental treatment and millions are going with out dentistry because they cannot afford it.

You don't know that this isn't the intention M0nica. I don't know that it is but it has been the declared aim by some on the right of the NHS and they have been in control of the party and pushing the NHS in that direction.

Why do you believe they wouldn't do with the NHS exactly what they have don't with dentistry? We have lost that and it will take more pulling back but we could stop this happening in Health.

on the right of the NHS on the right of the party in power

M0nica

All these thread full of people waxing hysterical over the NHS being privatised, which it isn't

Seems to me they would be of better use shouting long and hard over the de facto privitisation of the dental service, where we are already at the point where most of us have no choice other than to pay for dental treatment and millions are going with out dentistry because they cannot afford it.

You keep saying this, thread after thread. Without ever giving any evidence at all. I really do wonder why you keep stating this.

My dentist went completely private about 15 years ago - what can one do, that's how it is.

I have an appointment next week for 'posterior composite fillings' and the estimate is around £300 - but yesterday I spent £110 at the hairdressers so the dental charges seem reasonable in the overall scheme of things.

The opticians is another money pit but, like teeth, our eyes are important so we have to pay up.

My dentist went private about a year ago and I now have an insurance policy, but had to pay £153 for a simple filling and that was with 10% off.. but what choice do we have..

I have yet to see any evidence that anyone is being asked to pay for any main stream medical care: GP visit, hospital visit or an operation.

I know Sajid Javid suggested it recently, but he is yesterday's man, out of office and on his way out of politics.

Lots of ex-politicians in all parties suggest all kinds of wild and whacky policies when they are on their waay out. It is a way of grabbing back some attention, but no one in their right mind takes any notice of them.

What worries me most is that is because so many people have in been shouting 'wolf' over mainstream health care going private, they have ignored the real privitisation, which is that so many millions cannot afford private dental care and no longer have access to NHS dentists because the rates paid to dentists are so low that it is almost impossible for an NHS dental practice to operate and pay its staff.

Mine went private about 25 maybe 30 years ago and I stuck with him. He's now past retirement age and only working part time. Trouble is all the local dentists are now private and much more expensive than mine. My Son says he's always given options of treatment, much more expensive or cheaper but inferior according to his dentist. They always push him towards white fillings even at the back.

Coolgran65

I have been with my NHS dentist for 25 years. Today I learned he is now going private and reception has told me that at my upcoming appointment he will be having a conversation with me about the way forward. It seems I will have two options, pay as I go, or take out a Plan at a fee of £17.59 per monrh. The plan will become active after 6 monthly payments following my next checkup and will cover 2 check ups per year with scale and polish and up to 3 xrays. Plus 10% off other costs.
Perhaps naively I thought that as an NHS patient he couldn't just not continue to treat me on NHS.
As we know, getting into a new dentist's list as an NHS patient is nigh impossible.
I don't have good teeth, an upper denture but most of my lower teeth with lots of fillings, several crowns, root canals etc and no way do I want to be without a dentist.
I'm feeling that either way, even with the Plan, I will be facing hefty bills.

The wait for my knee replacement surgery was much too long - I had the surgery a private route. Same with dental.

Broken medical/dental system - it is what it is.

Luckily I still have an NHS dentist, but they are no longer taking on new NHS patients. However, I paid the same dentist privately for a new crown reently, as the NHS will not cover cosmetic dentistry - this was a very visible front tooth where the enamel front of the crown had worn away and I was left with the metal stump - perfectly still usable but not a pretty sight. Luckily I could afford it, and it was worth every penny.

I have recently paid £1500, that’s to have a failing bridge, removed, five teeth pulled out and a new top denture….😬

Shinamae

I have recently paid £1500, that’s to have a failing bridge, removed, five teeth pulled out and a new top denture….😬

I have had it done now well I’m still working part time as no way I could afford it on just the state pension which is what I’ll be left with when I give up work.. not sure how much longer I’ll be working as I am 70 in 10 days time, but I will work as long as I can..

We’re going to end up in a situation like the last century when single women had all of their teeth removed to make them more marriageable so prospective suitors wouldn’t have to worry about having to pay for dental treatment. Only this time round all the men will have to do the same !

I'm struggling to find a dentist around here. I've not been able to get an appointment since way before Covid, and I know my teeth are now in a terrible state. I've phoned the dentist I was registered with before Covid on numerous occasions, only to be told they're not doing routine appointments. I simply can't afford to go private.