NHS

Our Colchester dental practice dental fees

NHS Fees From 2020

The NHS works on a banding system comprising of three bands.

NHS dental care is still free for children under 18 (19 in full time education) as well as for pregnant women, new mothers and people on certain state benefits.

If you are exempt from NHS dental fees then please bring your proof of exemption along with you to your appointment. You will be asked to sign a NHS form stating which exemption you are claiming. The patient is responsible for the accuracy of their exemption and NOT the practice. If the wrong exemption is marked by the patient they may be liable for a fine of £100 from the NHS when checks are carried out at a later date.

For further information on NHS dental fees please visit the NHS website.
BAND 1 course of treatment - £23.80 includes an examination, diagnosis and advice. If necessary, it also includes X-rays, simple scaling and application of fluoride or fissure sealant.

BAND 2 course of treatment - £65.20 includes all treatment covered by Band 1, plus additional treatment, such as fillings, root canal treatment and removing teeth (extractions).

BAND 3 course of treatment - £282.80 includes all treatment covered by Bands 1 and 2, plus more complex procedures, such as crowns, dentures and bridges.

Emergency appointments - £23.80 if you require urgent care, you will only need to pay one Band 1 charge of £23.80. Most urgent treatments can be done in one appointment.
Urgent treatment means treatment that the dentist considers necessary to relieve severe pain or prevent your oral condition deteriorating before you can make a normal appointment. Please note, a lost crown or broken denture is not considered as urgent under NHS rules, and may be charged privately.

Once your urgent course of treatment is complete, you may be advised to make another appointment for a separate course of non-urgent treatment. In this case, the relevant Band charge will apply.

After your examination you will be given a full written plan detailing costs of the treatment recommended both NHS and privately. Please note that due to the nature of some treatment it is not always possible to give an accurate quote and an estimate may be given. However if the treatment does change, then the dentist will discuss it with you and tell you all of the costs involved before proceeding.

Payments are requested on the day of your treatment with the exception of private appointments where a non-refundable deposit may be taken.

If you are unable to keep your appointment please let us know as soon as possible so that we can use the appointment for another patient on our waiting list. The NHS is a health service with limited resources and if you miss more than one appointment or cancel with short notice within your course of treatment we may not be able to complete your treatment or offer you NHS care in the future.

Reminders and Recalls

At the end of your course of treatment your dentist will discuss with you when you will need to see the dentist again. NHS dentists now follow guidelines issued by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) on how often patients need to see their dentist according to their individual oral health needs. This can vary from three monthly to two yearly for someone with full dentures.

As a practice, we request that our patients attend at least once every two years to remain on our books and retain access to our NHS dental care.
For more information on our Dental Fees, call S.I.Mckenzie today on

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