Dental Payment Plan Membership 'Surging' As NHS Access Bites
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- Published: Thursday, 25 April 2024 10:09
- Written by Guy Tuggle
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The number of people belonging to dental payment plans has surged to new levels. Figures released for 2022 reveal that 3.8 million people were signed up to a dental payment or insurance plan, rendering the market worth £868M. This figure represents an almost 25% growth on the 2019 market value of £710M when 3.2 million patients were members of dental plans.
The majority of private patients, 75%, do not fall back on a plan but pay fees upfront.
In its 2019 Health Cover UK Market Report analysts LaingBuisson reveal that private health cover is at its highest level since 2008 with 7.3 million people accessing some or all of their medical care outside of the NHS.
The Report’s findings will come as little surprise to the dental profession. Scarcely a week passes without new statistics being released that confirm the scale of the NHS dental service access crisis.
Only four out of five practices with contracts are accepting new patients and a government survey reveals that one in four adults have delayed or gone without dental treatment on cost grounds. Notwithstanding these facts, the government recently raised patient charges by 4% on top of the 8.5% increase in 2023.
The Report’s overview of the dental sector said ’Demand for dental cover products has grown steadily since 2007, and has been aided by long-standing issues in accessing public-pay dentistry, along with rising cost in the NHS co-pay for dental, which have helped to make coverage plans a more appealing option.
Since the pandemic, dental capitation subscriptions have grown at 4.6% (2021) and 7.7% (2022) to cover 2.7 million people. Since 2007, the market value has grown from £454 million to £688 million – at a pace that has allowed it to remain steady in real-terms, despite the recent backdrop of high inflation.
Demand for dental insurance, as measured by contributor numbers and persons covered, has seen recent record growth. The number of subscribers increased 23% in 2021, and 22% in 2022 – leading to more than 1.1 million people covered under dental insurance. The market value of this segment has jumped to £180 million (2022), up from £143 million (2021) and £109 million immediately prior to the pandemic (2019).
Report author Tim Read quoted in The Telegraph, said: “With more and more people finding themselves unable get an appointment with NHS dentists, it comes as little surprise to find growing numbers choosing to take out dental cover – not just for themselves, but also to ensure their families are able to get the treatments they need, when they need it.”
He said many dentists were turning away from NHS care, amid frustration with the contracts on offer from the NHS.
Analysts highlighted recent record growth in the dental insurance market, with a 22 per cent rise in private dental subscription services, on the heels of a 23 per cent increase the year before.
The analysis tracks private dental services back to 2007, before which dental insurance had been declining.
LaingBuisson is the chosen provider of independent sector healthcare market data to the UK Government’s Office for National Statistics.
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