A state-wide blitz on dental waiting lists by the LNP government has cut the number of people on the Sunshine Coast waiting too long for dental treatment to zero.
Health Minister Lawrence Springborg said the number of Queenslanders waiting longer than the current benchmark time for a routine dental check-up and treatment has dropped by 100 per cent.
Member for Maroochydore Fiona Simpson praised this milestone in health service, saying the wait for dental treatment for Sunshine Coast residents was significantly less than it was 12 months ago.
Ms Simpson said that back in February 2013 there were 4,204 people in the Sunshine Coast Hospital and Health Service region who had been waiting for two or more years for public dental treatment.
“As of June 2014, there is no-one who has been on the waiting list for more than two years,” Ms Simpson said.
“This is such a great achievement. For the first time since the 1990s, no Queenslander has been waiting more than two years for public dental treatment.”
Ms Simpson said that the former Labor Government had lost control of Queensland Health.
“The Queensland Government is rebuilding front-line health services and we are now beginning to see some great results,” Ms Simpson said.
“This Government has invested $229 million on public oral health in Queensland over the last year which has been spent on hiring more dentists, investing in dental facilities and starting a voucher system so that private sector dentists could help deliver public dental care for free to patients.”
“I’m pleased to see that patients are now being provided with the care they need in a more appropriate time,” Ms Simpson said.
