And many have ended up paying for…private care. Boy, that was successful.
More than seven million patients have been unable to see an NHS dentist for almost two years.
Most of those denied access have paid for private care instead, says Citizens Advice.
But almost three million have gone without treatment altogether, claims the charity.
The figure includes thousands of children and is much higher than Government estimates….
The charity’s survey of 1,800 people, carried out by Ipsos MORI, found that lack of access was the most common reason for not seeing an NHS dentist, along with not needing treatment.
It was mentioned by one in three of those who had not seen an NHS dentist since April 2006.
Citizens Advice said the findings suggested 7.4million people had tried and failed to see an NHS dentist, with around 4.7million seeking private care instead and 2.7 million going without treatment altogether.
When we last left the British NHS, they were asking people to treat their own arthritis, asthma and heart failure, Brits were extracting their own teeth, and hygiene was less than acceptable.
by Stephan Tawney on Wed, Jan 16, 2008