Equity in dental care among Canadian households

Carlos Quiñonez,Paul Grootendorst

doi:10.1186/1475-9276-10-14

Carlos Quiñonez, Paul Grootendorst

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1186/1475-9276-10-14

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Abstract

BackgroundChanges in third party financing, whether public or private, are linked to a household's ability to access dental care. By removing costs at point of purchase, changes in financing influence the need to reach into one's pocket, thus facilitating or limiting access. This study asks: How have historical changes in dental care financing influenced household out-of-pocket expenditures for dental care in Canada?MethodsThis is a mixed methods study, comprised of an historical review of Canada's dental care market and an econometric analysis of household out-of-pocket expenditures for dental care.ResultsWe demonstrate that changes in financing have important implications for out-of-pocket expenditures: with more financing come drops in the amount a household has to spend, and with less financing come increases. Low- and middle-income households appear to be most sensitive to changes in financing.ConclusionsAlleviating the price barrier to care is a fundamental part of improving equity in dental care in Canada. How people have historically spent money on dental care highlights important gaps in Canadian dental care policy.

Highlights

Changes in third party financing, whether public or private, are linked to a household’s ability to access dental care
Of the approximately 5% of publicly financed care that remains, most has focused on socially marginalised groups, and is supported by different levels of government depending on the group insured [9]
To describe changes in dental care financing, health expenditure data from the Canadian Institute for Health Information and historical population estimates from Statistics Canada were used to plot per capita dental care expenditures from 1975-2005 nationally

Summary

Introduction

Changes in third party financing, whether public or private, are linked to a household’s ability to access dental care. Of the approximately 5% of publicly financed care that remains, most has focused on socially marginalised groups (e.g. low income children and adults), and is supported by different levels of government depending on the group insured [9]. In this context, Canadian governments are being asked to respond to historical and emerging issues in access to dental care [9].

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