Disadvantaged and vulnerable Australians will lose access to life-changing dental services as a result of Malcolm Turnbull’s decision to cut adult public dental, and waiting lists will grow across the country.
The funding allocated to the states and territories for public adult services is an insult when the Liberal Government have ripped hundreds of millions out of adult public dental since 2013.
In Government, Labor budgeted $391 million a year for the National Partnership Agreement into Adult Dental. The Abbott/ Turnbull Governments have cut at this time and time again – and today’s announcement with a further cut means the Liberals are ripping $300 million out of public dental every year. As a result, every year around 337,000 Australians will miss out on critical public dental services.
In addition, three million children will lose up to $300 in essential dental care due to Malcolm Turnbull’s decision today to rip hundreds of millions of dollars out of the Children’s Dental Benefits Schedule.
Labor fought the Government’s plans to abolish the CDBS altogether – and we are pleased that the Government has been forced to back down. However we do not support the reduction to $700 – ripping even more funding out of family health Budgets.
The Government’s own figures show that 20 per cent of children have a usage above $700. As a result of Malcolm Turnbull’s decision today, one in five children will have to limit essential dental care.
This announcement is an insult and a joke. No amount of smoke and mirrors will hide the fact that this Government is cutting funding from the dental services provided to children and disadvantaged Australians.
This is just more evidence that when it comes to health, there’s nothing that Malcolm Turnbull won’t destroy.
Nothing is safe in the hands of Malcolm Turnbull – not even the dental care of our children and most vulnerable.
THURSDAY, 15 DECEMBER 2016