Dental costs in Singapore rising, but employee benefits not keeping pace

Some workers are having to fork out more, while others seek cheaper treatment in JB

- Lok Jian Wen

The cost of dental care has been edging up over the past few years, driven by inflation and rising business costs, yet many workers are finding that their dental benefits have not kept pace, said human resources experts.

The rising costs are leading some employees to fork out more for dental care, and driving others to visit dentists across the Causeway in Johor Bahru.

The Straits Times reported in May that where some dental services cost a fraction of what they do here. The report prompted the Singapore Dental Association to call for dental benefits here to be relooked.

Dr Tan Tien Wang, general secretary of the association, said in a letter to ST that there was a need for “continual assessment and refinement of government subsidies, reimbursement schemes and regulatory frameworks”, especially when cost considerations are a significant driver behind a minority of Singaporeans seeking dental treatment abroad.

Checks by ST show that the cost of dental treatments has been rising over the years.

Citing figures from the Singapore Department of Statistics, the Ministry of Health (MOH) said the consumer price index (CPI) for dental services including fillings and root canal treatments as well as scaling and polishing saw an average annualised growth rate of 1.8 per cent from 2019 to 2023.

Compared with 2019, the CPI for dental services in 2023 by public institutions including polyclinics, specialist outpatient clinics and hospitals, as well as private dental clinics, has risen by nearly 7.5 per cent.

According to various clinics’ websites, at NTUC Health Denticare, which has 19 clinics in Singapore, basic dental treatments such as scaling and polishing would have cost around $50 in 2020. The same type of treatment now costs $65.40.

Meanwhile, the Q&M dental group, which runs over 100 clinics in Singapore, now starts charging from $87.20, up from $74.90 in 2021.