Ontario NDP vows dental plan for 4.5 million people

An NDP government in Ontario would spend $1.2 billion to provide dental coverage to an additional 4.5 million people, with the money coming from higher taxes for the wealthy and corporations, party leader Andrea Horwath said Monday.

If the party wins the provincial election in June, it will run a deficit to spend significantly on health care, Horwath said.

The NDP plan — called Ontario Benefits — would provide coverage for students, seniors and people working jobs without dental benefits, she said. “No matter how you work, from full-time and part-time employees, to independent workers on contract or freelance you will have health benefits,” Horwath said. “You will be able to get the dental care that you need.” The NDP dental plan, first announced Saturday, would extend publicly funded dental care to all seniors without retiree benefits at a cost of $670 million in its first year. The second stage of the plan would provide dental benefits to all workers, which the party estimates would cost $575 million a year. The plan would cover a number of dental procedures including basic exams, cleanings, X-rays, preventive and minor restorative work and necessary dentures. The plan for workers would be funded with a mix of employer and employee contributions similar to employment insurance. People earning under $30,000 would have contributions refunded while workers making over $60,000 would contribute a maximum of $4.33 a week.

The announcement came on the same day the province’s Liberal government outlined its priorities heading into the election with a throne speech. It also briefly mentioned dental care as an area the government plans to address in the upcoming provincial budget, set to be tabled March 28.