Nineteen recommendations made to reform medical card scheme that is 'haemorrhaging dentists'

The chairperson of the Oireachtas Health Committee said: 'Too many children are leaving primary school without ever having had a dental screening.' File picture

A medical card scheme for dental services in Ireland is “haemorrhaging dentists”, and too many children are leaving primary school without having ever had a dental screening, an Oireachtas committee has warned.

In a new report, the Oireachtas Health Committee has made 19 recommendations it said must be implemented as a priority to improve dental services in Ireland. Chairperson Pádraig Rice said the committee has been concerned for some time at the “deepening crisis” in dental services.