Financial concerns lead many to limit oral health care visits

Statistics Canada says more than one in four Canadians, 28 per cent, have not visited an oral health care professional at all in the previous 12 months, with nearly half of these research respondents, 49 per cent, saying cost is the barrier.

The report, Cost-related avoidance of oral health services, further found that 24 per cent of those over age 12 had avoided going to an oral health professional at least once because of cost, even if they did visit the dentist or other oral health professional at another time during the same period. The 2023-2024 results are similar to the proportions reported in 2018 when 22 per cent said they avoided oral health care and in 2022 when 24 per cent said the same.

At the household level, meanwhile, 32 per cent of households reported having at least one member of the household who avoided visiting an oral health care professional because of the cost.

Among the specific reasons for avoiding care, 63 per cent reported not being able to pay the amount not covered by insurance and 25 per cent said they could not afford to pay up front and wait for reimbursement.

Insurance and income are key predictors 

As in previous studies, the Statistics Canada researchers confirmed that insurance and income are key predictors of access to dental care: 45 per cent without dental insurance, regardless of their income avoided dental visits – almost four times higher than those who had insurance.

“Both income and insurance play an important role in access to dental services and care. Among those without dental insurance, 50 per cent of individuals with an adjusted family net income (AFNI) under $90,000 and 30 per cent of those with an AFNI of $90,000 or more avoided visits to an oral health professional due to cost,” the report states. “For those with private insurance, cost-related avoidance was 19 per cent for individuals with AFNI less than $90,000 and seven per cent for those with an AFNI of $90,000 or more.” The report estimates that about one-third of Canadians over age 12 do not have any dental insurance.

Overall, women at 27 per cent were, more likely than men (22 per cent) to report that cost is a barrier to visiting an oral health professional. Racialized Canadians, 33 per cent, were more likely to report avoiding visits to an oral health professional due to costs. This drops to 21 per cent among non-racialized Canadians. Similarly, 36 per cent of Canadians with a disability avoided such care, compared to 22 per cent of those without a disability.