The findings have led to accusations that NHS patients are being ripped off under a system one dentist branded “wicked”.

Dental industry leaders said the disparity between charges had been caused by the new contract the Government had imposed on dentists, which was designed to simplify treatment costs.

Patients pay a flat rate of £43.60 whether they have one filling or six. If they went outside the NHS they would have to pay for only one filling, although many private surgeries do charge much more.

The disclosure comes after an official report revealed that 47,000 fewer patients were being treated since the new NHS contract came into force in April last year and at least 500 dentists have left the health service.

Two million people are trying to register with an NHS dentist but are unable to find one to take them.

Since the untested changes took effect NHS dental treatments have been banded under three costs.

A band one treatment, such as an examination, X-ray or scale and polish, costs £15.90.

Band two treatments, which include anything from one to six fillings or root canal work, cost the patient a fixed flat rate of £43.60.

Band three treatments are crowns, dentures and bridge work and cost the patient £194.

For each treatment carried out dentists earn points, called Units of Dental Activity (UDA), the price of which is set locally and is an average of about £20.

For a band one treatment the dentist earns one UDA, for band two they earn three and for band three they earn 12.

Dentists have been given targets on the number of UDAs they must carry out each year but if they exceed it they are not paid more.

Those who missed their target this year have been asked to pay back thousands of pounds, meaning more dentists are now considering leaving the NHS.

The Daily Telegraph understands that some dentists are playing the system by splitting treatments across several visits so they can collect a new set of payments for each visit.

Ian Mills, who runs a practice in Torrington, Devon, said: “Financially the contract is worse for patients than it is for dentists. If a dentist does complex treatment they are penalised.

“If I have a patient with an abscess I could save that tooth by doing a root filling, which would take two hours, or I could take it out, which would take 20 minutes. Ethically, I should save the tooth but they are the same financial reward so the incentive is to remove the tooth.”

Anthony Halperin, the chairman of the Patients Association and a dentist, said: “I am convinced that this contract is not to patients’ advantage.

They are not being treated as efficiently as they were under the old system and they are paying more for it.

“Dentists are so driven by hitting targets that there is no incentive to carry out complex work that might be best for the patient. I fear more dentists will leave the NHS.”

Peter Ward, the chief executive of the British Dental Association, said: “For a government to be responsible for building a system that drives these potential incentives is wicked. This is the reason dentists are deciding to leave the NHS. We can’t have a situation where delivering the best care for your patients means you lose money.”

The BDA’s records show that 1,600 dentists left the NHS before the new contract was implemented in April 2006.

Mr Ward said he expected more dentists to leave the NHS this year as the inadequacies of the contract were now becoming a reality.

From:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/08/13/nhs113.xml

The scandal of labour’s dental hypocrisy is boundless. On Oct 09, 06 Health Direct posted: Dentists abandon children on NHS when up to two-thirds of children in some areas of England are failing to get regular dental treatment as thousands of youngsters have been dropped by dentists no longer willing to provide free National Health Service care.

This weekend dentists have warned that children will find it even more difficult to get free dental care in the future as fewer dentists undertake NHS work.

Dentists believe access to the NHS will worsen because of government reforms to the way they are paid. A survey of local dental committees, carried out by the British Dental Association, showed 90% predict access to NHS dentistry will worsen.

On the other hand on March 13, 07 Health Direct posted: Hypocrite Stalinist Brown bitten over private dental work

The chancellor has been accused of spurning the National Health Service by paying hundreds of pounds for routine dental work to a private dentist known for his celebrity clients. Gordon “Stalinist” Brown had root canal work done by Mervyn Druian, who runs a surgery in north London. He charges up to £650 for the procedure, compared with a standard NHS cost of £42.

His choice has angered critics who blame Labour for the virtual disappearance of NHS dentistry in large parts of the country, with claims that more than 1m people have lost dental cover in the past year alone.