NHS dental costs will rise in April leaving patients facing higher bills

Health Minister Stephen Kinnock unveiled plans to increase dental charges by 2.3% to fund provision of care - but dentists accused the Government of 'reheated austerity'

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The cost of basic NHS dental care will rise in April in fresh misery for patients.

Health Minister Stephen Kinnock unveiled plans to increase charges for dental patients by 2.3% to fund provision of care. But the British Dental Association (BDA) accused the Government of imposing stealth cuts on millions of patients, branding the hike "reheated austerity".

Children, pregnant women, most veterans and people who receive certain benefits can get free NHS dental care. But everyone else must pay based on the type of treatment they need.

People who need basic care such as check-ups or X-rays will pay £27.40, up from £26.80. Band 2 care, which includes fillings, tooth extraction or root canal treatment, will cost £75.30, up from £73.50. And people who need dentures, bridges, crowns or braces will need to pay £326.70, up from £319.10.

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Shiv Pabary, chair of the BDA's General Dental Practice Committee, said: "This hike is reheated austerity. It won't put a penny into a struggling service. Our patients are paying more, just so ministers can pay less. Rachel Reeves will need to justify her stealth cuts to millions of patients."

The Mirror has been campaigning to fix the broken dentistry system, which has left people forced to pull out their own teeth because they can't access an NHS dentist. More than 12 million people were unable to access NHS dental care last year – more than 1 in 4 adults in England.

The BDA launched a petition with 38 Degrees, calling for the hike to be abandoned and urging ministers to come up with an alternative funding plan for NHS dentistry.

Matthew McGregor, chief executive at 38 Degrees, said: "Families across the country will be bracing themselves today at the news that they'll soon be hit by a health bill hike during this ongoing cost of living crisis - and that's if they're lucky enough to even have access to an NHS dentist in the first place.

"It's the wrong move at the wrong time - especially as the extra price tag won't result in the improvements in dental care so many of us are desperate for."

Adrian Ramsey MP, Green Party co-leader, said: "NHS dentistry is utterly broken. Make no mistake, this 2.3% rise in dental charges from 1 April 2025 is, in effect, a cut in services.

"It will not help dentists or services, let alone deliver for patients. This increase won't solve the root problems of the crisis in dentistry, nor will it stop the exodus of dentists from the NHS.

"The Government must immediately step in and provide adequate central funding for dentistry combined with a review of the dental contract to make it economic for dentists to work in the NHS."

In a written statement to MPs, Mr Kinnock said: "The Government’s ambition is to make sure that everyone who needs a dentist can get one. On Friday 21 February 2025, we launched the rollout of the extra 700,000 urgent dental appointments promised by the Government in its election manifesto."

The new appointments will be targeted at so-called dental deserts, where patients struggle to get care because there aren't enough dentists.

A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: "We inherited a £22 billion black hole in the public finances, and NHS dentistry services that had been left broken by years of neglect. We are already rolling out an extra 700,000 urgent appointments, introducing a supervised toothbrushing programme to prevent tooth decay in young children, and planning dental contract reform to make NHS work more appealing to dentists.

“In previous years, dental patient charges have increased above inflation levels, which is not the case this year. Almost half of all patients remain eligible for dental patient charge exemptions under the NHS - including children, those on low incomes and pregnant women – as we deliver fundamental reform to get the sector back on its feet through our Plan for Change.”