Suffolk to lose two dental practices as Bupa Dental Care confirms closures
Suffolk is set to lose two dental practices after Bupa Dental Care confirmed the closure of 85 clinics by the end of 2023.
Bupa Dental Care has announced plans to sell, merge or close 85 clinics across the UK, including the practices in Eye and Brandon. Suffolk is one of the worst-affected areas in terms of NHS dental access issues and the news will come as a bitter blow to patients.
Managers at Bupa Dental Care have made the decision to close a large number of practices due to difficulties recruiting dentists. Some practices have been looking for staff for years with many unable to fill vacancies for NHS dentists. The British Dental Association claims that around 3,000 dentists have left the NHS since 2020.
NHS data suggests that around 7.5 million patients in England were unable to see an NHS dentist in 2022.
As well as facing challenges finding an NHS dentist, patients are also paying more for NHS dental care following a price hike, which was introduced on April 1st. The new prices will be £25.80 for band 1 treatments, £70.70 for a band 2 treatment and £306.80 for band 3 treatments. The cost of a basic check-up, a band 1 service, has increased by £2.
For more news click here.
Join this Discussion