It is no mystery why universal dental care has long been placed in the too-hard basket by a succession of New Zealand governments. That indicated one in three New Zealanders was living with untreated tooth decay, and doubtless that ratio has worsened. Regrettably, professional dental care is seen as a luxury for many of our citizens. The Waitemata and Auckland DHBs formally elected to support the Ministry of Health should it choose to investigate a free or subsidised dental health system. This first-term Labour Government has a few pressing issues on its plate but there are signs universal dental may come back on agenda.

Source: Otago Daily Times March 10, 2019 15:52 UTC