Posted by Northern Life Reporter Laurel Myers
The Ontario Government is stepping up its funding for children, between 14 and 17, whose dental health has taken the back burner.
As part of its Poverty Reduction Strategy, the government is expanding the Children In Need Of Treatment (CINOT) program to improve oral health among Ontario's low-income families and their children, who have no access to other forms of dental care or insurance.
Effective Jan. 1, 2009, the CINOT program will increase the maximum eligibility age from 14 to 17. It ensures no child goes without essential/emergency dental care as a result of an inability to pay for the dental services.
"Dental care is not part of our publicly insured and funded health care system," said Dr. Penny Sutcliffe, medical officer of health and chief executive officer of the Sudbury & District Health Unit (SDHU).
"Dental health is something we take for granted, even more so I would say than our physical health. But...kids can't learn if their teeth are hurting them. It's a big deal. It impacts their lives and their achievements."
Since Jan. 1, 2006, the government has increased CINOT funding two per cent per year as part of their commitment to promoting health for all Ontarians.
"With an investment of approximately $28.3 million in the program over the next three years, we expect to double the number of children who can access the service," Minister of Health Promotion Margarett Best wrote in a letter to boards of health across the province.
However, the program will only be 100 per cent funded until the end of the year. After that, the program will be cost-shared, with municipalities picking up 25 per cent of the tab.
That struck a sour chord with board member and city councillor, Janet Gasparini.
"This is absolutely outrageous. Poverty reduction will not happen on the back of municipal taxpayers. Who the hell do they think is poor?" she said.
"This has to really be about changing things in the province, and if all you're going to do is ask the municipalities to start paying for things they weren't paying for before, you really aren't changing anything, and that's not fair to the municipality."
She explained people have to pay property tax, regardless of their income, "so when you start making people pay for their social services on a property tax, you can often be taxing the people who actually need access to the service.
"You can't tax the poor to pay for programs for the poor."
Dr. Sutcliffe said she understood the councillor's concerns.
"(It's not a) concern about the need for or the wisdom of the program," she said.
"(My priority is) getting the kids the services ... I think it's an important investment."
Charlene Plexman, manager of family and dental health at the SDHU, said the program has been in existence for about 15 years. Members of the SDHU go into the elementary schools in the Sudbury area, and screen and assess the children's dental health. Parents/guardians are contacted if the child is in need of dental care and connected with a dentist.
"We reimburse the dental offices for the cost of treatment," Plexman said. "It's for children who have urgent treatment needs, such as fillings and extractions."
Last year, the CINOT program assisted more than 600 children. As for the number of teens, aged 14-17, who will require the service, the SDHU was not able to provide a specific number.
"This enhancement is definitely going to assist a portion of our community that currently does not have access to dental care, because the cost of dental care becomes a barrier to treatment," Plexman said.
"These children, in the past, didn't have an option. If the family couldn't pay for care, then they went without treatment, or the families would struggle to pay for it by giving up other things, like basic needs ... in order for their child to get treated."
