Close X
Friday, November 1, 2024
ADVT 
National

Dental-care program hits 1 million patients in first six months, coverage expands

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 31 Oct, 2024 09:43 AM
  • Dental-care program hits 1 million patients in first six months, coverage expands

A million Canadians have received care under the federal dental-care plan six months after the program began, Health Minister Mark Holland said Thursday. 

Starting on Friday, the program will also cover more complex procedures. 

That means people who have coverage under the federal program can request pre-authorization for things like crowns and the initial placement of partial dentures, as well as what the program deems high-need or complex conditions. 

Paper claims will also be accepted, something Holland said will mean that more dentists and oral care providers are eligible to work under the program. 

Once these expansions are up and running, Holland said the government is on track to begin expanding who can get coverage under the program next year. 

"We haven't set on the exact date, that's obviously still being figured out. We are obviously tracking very closely how pre-authorization and paper claims go. But early in 2025 is when we're looking to expand to additional cohorts," Holland said. 

The program is currently available for seniors, adults on the federal disability tax credit and children under 18. Currently, 2.7 million Canadians are registered to receive care under the program. 

Holland said the goal is to expand the eligibility as quickly as possible. 

"We are absolutely committed in 2025, as fast as possible, to expand this to all Canadians."

Eighty-nine per cent of oral health providers in the country are providing some form of care under the program, according to Holland. 

MORE National ARTICLES

Tourist randomly assaulted near Canada Place

Tourist randomly assaulted near Canada Place
Vancouver police say charges have been laid after a tourist was randomly assaulted near Canada Place last Sunday.  The V-P-D say a woman visiting Vancouver was walking near Canada Place's cruise ship terminal Sunday morning when a stranger repeatedly punched and kicked her. 

Tourist randomly assaulted near Canada Place

Air India passengers get a lift from RCAF after bomb scare forces landing in Nunavut

Air India passengers get a lift from RCAF after bomb scare forces landing in Nunavut
More than 200 Air India passengers should be on the ground in Chicago this morning after their flight was diverted to Nunavut due to a bomb threat. The airline issued an update overnight via social media, thanking the Royal Canadian Air Force for helping ferry the 211passengers of Flight 127 from India to their final destination.

Air India passengers get a lift from RCAF after bomb scare forces landing in Nunavut

Reduction in permit wait times for multiplex housing in Vancouver

Reduction in permit wait times for multiplex housing in Vancouver
Vancouver is planning to reduce the time it takes to get a building permit for certain multiplex applications. The city says a streamlined permit application process starting early next year will take about half the time.

Reduction in permit wait times for multiplex housing in Vancouver

Woman stabbed outside Whalley home

Woman stabbed outside Whalley home
Surrey R-C-M-P say they're looking for three young female suspects after a woman was stabbed outside a home in Whalley. Police say the woman didn't know the suspects, who are all believed to be between the ages of 15 and 20.

Woman stabbed outside Whalley home

Sikh groups calls for Indian consulates to be shut down in Vancouver, Toronto

Sikh groups calls for Indian consulates to be shut down in Vancouver, Toronto
Representatives of a British Columbia Sikh temple whose president was shot dead last year, as well as the Sikh independence group he was involved in, say their communities won't feel safe until India's consulates in Vancouver and Toronto are shut down.

Sikh groups calls for Indian consulates to be shut down in Vancouver, Toronto

Child dead after falling from 19th floor window in Winnipeg, police say

Child dead after falling from 19th floor window in Winnipeg, police say
Police in Winnipeg say a child has died after falling from a window on the 19th floor of a building. It happened Monday in the city's downtown. The child was taken to hospital and pronounced dead.

Child dead after falling from 19th floor window in Winnipeg, police say