Dentists will now set own fee for fillings

Until now a PRSI-insured patient was required to pay no more than €13.50 for a filling. The Government made a contribution of €26.50 to dentists for each filling.

However, under the new scheme there is no price-cap on fillings. Dentists will set their own fee, PRSI workers will be entitled to a 15 per cent discount and the Government will make a contribution of €29.19. But the patient will have to pay the remainder. This has led to fears that prices for fillings, the most common procedure, will spiral. The outgoing set of fees was introduced in July 2001. In each of the past 10 years an annual review of prices had been carried out leading to an increase in prices every year.

The cost of an extraction to a PRSI-insured worker who earns less than €45,000 per year will increase from €10.67 to €12.34. This charge is fixed. The dentist will get a 10pc rise in fees from the State. Procedures such as examination and polishing will remain free but dentists will get a 10 per cent pay rise.