Message from the Minister of Health regarding Request for Information from Industry on Proposed National Dental Care Program

OTTAWA, ON, July 25, 2022 /CNW/ - Having access to quality dental care is an integral part of overall health and wellbeing. Canadians shouldn't have to choose between dental care and basic needs like food or housing.

In Budget 2022, the Government of Canada committed $5.3 billion over five years to provide dental care for the estimated 7 to 9 million Canadians who are unable to access proper dental care because of the cost.

Seeing a dentist is important for our health, but can be expensive. We know that a third of Canadians do not have dental insurance. This must change. The goal of the national dental care program is to help Canadians with the costs of dental care, starting with under 12-year-olds in 2022, and then expanding to those under 18-year-olds, seniors, and persons living with a disability in 2023, with full implementation by 2025. The program will be designed for families with an income of less than $90,000 annually.

Health Canada and other government partners have been working together to develop advice for the design of a new dental care program. Today, the Government of Canada issued a Request for Information (RFI) in order to seek industry input about the role they could play in a national dental care program. The RFI will be open for four weeks, from July 25 to August 22, 2022.

This engagement with industry, as well as engagement with provincial and territorial partners, will help to inform the Government's decisions on how to proceed as the Government of Canada moves forward with this important commitment.  

The Honourable Jean-Yves Duclos, P.C., M.P.

SOURCE Health Canada

Marie-France Proulx, Press Secretary, Office of the Honourable Jean-Yves Duclos, Minister of Health, 613-957-0200; Media Relations, Health Canada, 613-957-2983, [email protected]