It's not only with dental work. When the recipient is insured, I feel there is too often indifference to what is billed for the procedure. One prominent Vancouver talk show moderator admitted that he didn't care whether certain tests were done by the hospital or private clinic. He chose whatever suited his convenience.

It wouldn't be for everyone to make or repair their own dentures but I believe there is an entrepeneurial opportunity for a business in do-it-yourself kits.

I was further persuaded of such a scheme when I learned, as I recall, of an aged and senile woman being charged $17,000 for dental work.

Normally, dental insurers charge an arm and a leg for private insurance and have a set maximum for what they will pay in a certain fiscal year. Even with insurance the woman who paid the $17,000 bill would still be liable for about $14,000 of it in most cases.

If you find a dentist who is honest and responsible and reasonable, stick with him and you will be ahead of the game moneywise.

Dental care is health care!

Chronic inflammation that correlates with common heart and vascular disease is also correlated with poor dental health.

Therefore, it is in Canada's interest to take care of her citizens' teeth, as Canada will see lower health care costs as a result.

That's the beauty of government-funded, single-payer systems: all sorts of feedback loops provide incentives for better health. In the US, the government collects more tax revenue when people are unhealthy -- a negative incentive to provide for common good health.

I am immigrating to Canada next week, due in no small part to your excellent health care system. As a self-employed "cultural creative," I find it impossible to afford health insurance in the US.

In fact, were it not for my "four magic words," I would not have health care at all. But I've discovered a phrase that is good for at least a 50% discount whenever I go to a doctor: "I don't have insurance." Is this a dysfunctional system, or what?

Unfortunately, it will be three years before I can vote for Canadian politicians who will protect your health care system. (But you don't have to be a citizen to campaign and make a lot of noise!)

and the dental system works well, no lineups, na annual strikes, lots of dentists to chose from.

maybe we should look at the Dental services delivery model and retrofit our Healthcare system.

Publicly insured, mix of private and public delivery would be the best.

Without any incentive, the public system won't change, it will get more inefficient - we shovel more and more money off the truck every year and services get worse and worse very year - go figure, there has to be huge inefficiences and wastage in the current system.

There is no such thing as an efficent monopoly.

My dentist always asks, "Still working in the same place?", which I understand to be code for "am I free to bill the limit?" (actually, he bills above the fee schedule). I have always believed that uninsured people pay more reasonable fees.

Thanks to Marc Lee for his excellent opening article - we need more of this type of open discussion. In fact, BC could well do with holding regular forums, organized on the Citizens' Assembly model. When a dysfunctional healthcare system costs us around 43% of the provincial budget, anyone with a brain must recognize something needs to be done - and fast.
When the Campbell Liberals ascended to the throne, they made indiscriminate cuts to the system and, if we did not know it then, we know now that they did not have a clue what the end product should look like. The system went from bad to seriously worse - and the very worst thing they did was to eliminate from coverage, most of the ancilliary services that allowed for preventative and/or lower cost procedures. Here is one example of how such ill-conceived actions negatively impact the provincial bottom line:

About ten years ago, a 40-year old female was in excruciating pain from a back problem that followed packing around her 3 little ones on one hip. Ended up lying on the floor, unable to move. Trips to the primary care physician did no good and resulted in a referral to a Neurosurgeon, who immediately recommended an operation to fuse 3 vertebrae. The patient, who believes in knowing all sides of the story, asked some questions. The attitude of the surgeon was, I don't have time to explain everything, you would not understand it anyway and that's my recomendation, do you want it or not?'
Luckily for her, she thanked the surgeon, told him she'd be in touch, and left his office for good. She did this in part because, while waiting for the appointment, she heard of a local, fully-qualified, Chinese-trained physician who was working wonders on such back conditions, using a form of needle treatment which, in lay terms, is best described as a type of acupuncture. [If anyone is interested they can Google on Dr. Chan Gunn and ISTOP - Institute for the Study and Treatment of Pain]
Now back to preventative health care: The cost of 6-7 treatments by Dr. Gunn was less than $1,000. and the patient remains pain and trouble-free.
Today, that female has a friend who is on his second back fusion operation because the first one caused problems with adjacent vertebrae, and so the neurosurgeons are gradually working their way up the spine, with more a more limitations of movement as a result. Can anyone guess how much that all costs? My guess is that costs to the system for that patient have already exceeded $10,000, and so it continues. Can anyone tell me why the Premier and his government so stubbornly refuse to see the light?
My guess is that, when one takes into account all of the complementary support networks required for an acute care/chronic care patient in the regular system, preventative dentistry, healthcare, pharmaceuticals and eye examinations would save the provincial budget about 25% overall.
The question is, does the government have the wit to tackle the problem - or are they happy just sending the Premier on out-of-town "fact-finding trips" that achieve absolutely nothing?
As a final comment, this blog discussion shows that the Canadian immigration system is also dysfunctional. $54/month premium for new arrivals who are not yet citizens is supposed to fund his/her health care? Give me a break -and make non-citizens - those who are not genuine refugees that is - carry their own private healthcare premiums until they at least get the Citizenship certificate in their hands. So long as such a plan is not in place, Canada is a mark for any Tom, Dick or Jane who sticks their big toe on the beach.

Dental work for welfare recipients is far from good. Many friends of mine on fare-well have had to have their teeth extracted. While it is true that restorative work might have been avoided had these folks had the means and inclination to go for regular check-ups and cleaning, etc., cost was often a deterrent, as the article points out.

We have had benefits, locally, for some folks who needed dentures. When you've had several teeth extracted, health problems often follow, and welfare was not going to cover the cost of dentures. Go figure.

My plan is not gold-plated, but when I last went to have a chunk of lost tooth replaced, I had to make some decisions about the kind of crown I wanted, and whether or not I wanted to have my old amalgam fillings (in the same quadrant) removed and replaced with a healthier composite material. Even with the workplace extended health care plan kicking in, I walked out of the dentist's $745.00 poorer.

Isabella2, thanks for the ISTOP connection.

Kowtool:

The fact that you were $745 poorer when you left the dentist's office, tells much of the story. I don't know the amount of the current average monthly welfare cheque, but would be willing to bet that a single person would be expected to exist for a month on less than the amount you paid your dentist.
I'm not advocating that professionals should be paid less and have no resentment against the wealthy. What I am saying is that the billions of taxes we pay to all levels of government need to be spent more effectively. We need more value for our money. I'm sick of seeing it squandered on huge severance packages and boondoggle projects, while the working poor struggle to get a roof over their heads and a filling in their tooth.
I'm beginning to think that a week spent on the Downtown Eastside should be a prerequisite for any candidate for political office. I they were to realize that about half the population or more is only one step away from vagrancy, maybe they'd think twice before crowing about our "booming economy."
And you're almost right when you say, "when you've had several teeth removed, health problems often follow". Fact is health problems alwaysfollow.
Keep on talking, Kootowl, sooner or later someone will have to listen.

I was on a plan recently where I shared the premiums with my employer. After some quick figuring, I was far better off self insuring. For what I was paying out each month, I could afford to spend some very comfortable time in the chair.
Besides, insurance companies are in their biz for PROFIT$. $$$$$ rules everything an insurance company does.
Did you know that any form of insurance policy is a form of gambling?
It is. You are betting that you will get more out of them than they will out of you before you die or go to the dentist ect.
Did you ever wonder why life insurance has a two year provision? You have to pay premiums for two years before they will pay out. Check your policy.