Wexford is mid-table in cost of dental treatment
IT’S WELL WORTH pricing around before your next dental appointment after a recent survey highlighted huge variances in price for dental treatments depending on where you live.
A whatclinic.com survey of 1,076 clinics, published by the Irish Independent, found that patients pay an average of €45 to see a dentist.
In Wexford, the average cost of consulation is €35 but it is cheapest in Westmeath with a cost of just €28 while in Cork dwellers have to pay the most at €64 for dental advice.
The price of a filling is €71 in Wexford however a dentist in Monaghan will top up your tooth for a mere €58, but if you are living in Mayo you will have to fork out €88 for your average filling.
The greatest difference in dental prices is in teeth whitening– a procedure which was free to all PRSI employees until 2010. Wexford dentists are charging an average of €224 for the treatment but in Westmeath smiles are brightened for just €159, and the most expensive place to get pearly whites is Kerry where it costs an average of €338.
The cost of a tooth extraction also varies widely, with dentists in Wexford charging €73, while the cheapest tooth pulling is carried out in Cavan at just €50, but Carlow dentists charge a hefty €93 .
Dermott Jewell of the Consumers’ Association said: ‘Consumers are paying way more than what is realistic and what’s affordable.’
Responding to the survey, the assistant CEO of the Irish Dental Association, Elaine Hughes, said prices would always differ.
‘It’s now the law for dentists to display their prices in their surgeries so that people can know beforehand exactly what they are going to be paying for,’ she said.