Australians Struggling to Afford Dental Care, Survey Reveals
A new survey has suggested that Australians are struggling to afford dental and medical care. The findings of a recent survey, which were released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics, show that 1 in 5 Australians puts off going to the dentist because of cost. The poll also revealed that 1 in 20 people admitted to delaying seeing their GP due to cost.
Financial pressures were particularly concerning in disadvantaged areas, where 28.3 percent of people admitted to missing routine appointments and putting off going to a dentist until they were in pain. This figure was significantly higher than the proportion of people who delayed dental appointments in more affluent areas. Just 12.1 percent of people admitted to worrying about dental costs in the wealthiest areas. More than 7 percent of people said that they avoided buying medication because they couldn’t afford prescription costs.
The survey also asked people about waiting times to see their GP. Although the figure was still high at 21 percent, this was lower than the figure of 23 percent in the previous survey in 2013/2014.
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