Letters to the Editor: The public dental system is falling apart 

A reader says Irish families on low incomes are going into debt to pay for dentistry that should be funded from general taxation

Citing the Irish Dental Association, a reader says there are now fewer than 650 Dental Treatment Service Scheme medical card dentists nationwide. Picture: iStock

Our public dentistry system has completely collapsed and our Government is telling us repeatedly that they are “working on the problem”. 

This rhetoric is of little comfort to thousands of people who are living in pain, sometimes great pain, waiting to be seen and treated by the very few remaining number of dentists still in the medical card system. Less than 650 Dental Treatment Service Scheme (DTSS) medical card dentists remain nationwide — source: Irish Dental Association on their website. Down from 1,660 in 2007.