Too expensive care, excess fees, lack of transparency … The provisional report of the Court of Auditors on “the oral care“that was procured Le Figaro pins dentists. According to the daily, the Court of Auditors explains the state “poor“oral health in France by a”disengagement“public authorities, a”lack of transparency in the sector“and by”the indigence of the controls of the profession“. Magistrates would therefore call for”fundamentally reform the organization of oral health care“.
2.6 billion euros remain chargeable to patients
The fee overruns, which represent half of the salary of dental surgeons, are prohibitive for one in five patients, who then forgo consultations and dental care. Indeed, according to Le Figaro, social security only reimburses “33% of the 10.6 billion euros“total oral and dental expenses, and mutual funds”about 39%“. As a result, more than 2.6 billion euros would remain the responsibility of patients.
Better reimbursement of prevention and maintenance acts
The daily recalls that since 2006, three price increases have been granted to dentists, which would have cost 160 million euros per year to social security, without allowing it to “contain the surge in fee overruns“. While professionals continue to demand a new rate hike, the Court of Auditors would recommend several solutions to reform the sector. First of all, it would recommend”let the only health supplements reimburse heavy care (dental prosthesis, etc.)“, so that social security can better reimburse lighter acts of prevention and maintenance. It would also propose to impose more transparency on dental surgeons, in particular on the purchase prices of dental prostheses. The final report of the Court of Auditors should be made public in September 2016.
>> To read also:
Infographic: good reasons to go to the dentist
Hypnosis sets in at the dentist
4 in 10 French people shun the dentist
Advice on never being afraid of the dentist again