Less Chatter, More Action on Dental Health

Independent candidate for Gilmore, Of None, has called for dental treatment to become part of mainstream health care by including it in the Medicare program.

“Why should the state of a person’s teeth be seen as a non-health issue when every other condition associated with the human body is?” he asks.

“For teeth to not be covered by Medicare is as silly as not including tonsils, when you think about it,” he said today.

Mr. None points to studies that link periodontal disease to a significantly higher incidence of heart disease, stroke and premature death.

“Numerous studies show that dental care is vital to minimising the risk of these causes of death. In fact most studies have shown that dental disease is a larger risk factor for heart disease than being overweight, having a high cholesterol level, not exercising or smoking,” he said.

Mr. None advocates that dental care for all Australians should be a priority of the next government, particularly at this time of economic prosperity.

“Cut back on the proposed tax cuts for higher income earners or increase the Medicare Levy, or both, as necessary to make dental health part of the regular health care system,” he replied when asked how his proposal should be funded.

“Millions are spent telling us to lose weight, not smoke, eat better etc to prevent heart disease and strokes but a seemingly far greater risk factor, the state of one’s teeth, is ‘your problem’, unless you’re privately insured of course. That’s not good enough; such a serious risk to health deserves a universal approach,” he concluded.