Health Minister Sarah Hoffman introduced a new dental fee guide Wednesday, one that recommends an average 8.5 percent drop in prices for dozens of procedures.
The province said Alberta has not had a dental fee guide in more than two decades – in 2016, a review found Albertans pay more than residents of other provinces for a number of dental procedures.
“What it says to me as a consumer, when I go in to see my dentist in January, is I can say: ‘Do you bill in line with the fee guide?’” Hoffman said Wednesday.
The guide introduced Wednesday covers 60 procedures.
This version is a second try at a dental fee guide, back in August, the Alberta Dental Association and College released a package that would have included a 3 percent cut to average dental costs, but the minister sent that back to the drawing board.
The new guide will go into effect on New Year’s Day, and will be available in full and in an abridged version on the website for the Alberta Dental Association and College.
The province said there is no obligation for dentists to follow the guide, but officials in other provinces have seen most dentists align with fee guidelines in those jurisdictions.
“Looking at what happens in other provinces, the vast majority of dentists are in line with the fee guide,” Hoffman said.
More to come…
