Government single parent grants and schemes

The Child Dental Benefits Schedule is Closing

Singlemum.com.au staff | 04 May 2016

The government’s free child dental scheme is ending soon

The government has announced that they will end the Child Dental Benefits Schedule on the 1st of July this year, 2016.

The Child Dental Benefits Schedule commenced in January 2014, and covers child dental service costs. It is capped at $1000 over two years.

The popular scheme made it possible for single parent and low-income families to access their own dentist of choice for their child’s basic dental checks and procedures for free, rather than having to use their local community-funded clinic or centre.

Scheme benefits cover a range of services including examinations, x-rays, cleaning, fillings, root canals and extractions. Unfortunately they don’t cover cosmetic dentistry or orthodontic services, such as braces.

Who is eligible for the
Child Dental Benefits Schedule?

Who is eligible?

Your children are eligible for the government-funded Child Dental Benefits Schedule if

your child is aged 2 to 17 years of age
you receive Family Tax Benefit Part A (FTBA) or Parenting Payment
your child receives Family Tax Benefit Part A, Abstudy, Disability Support Pension, Carer Payment or Youth Allowance
your child is eligible for Medicare

For full eligibility details and further information and conditions regarding the Dental Scheme, go to the official Government website here.

Until a replacement scheme is announced, it may be a good time to consider booking in with your child’s dentist prior to 1 July 2016 when the Child Dental Benefits Schedule officially ends. When booking, be sure to confirm that your dentist participates in the Child Dental Benefits Schedule.

Stop press

The Dental Benefits Amendment Bill 2016 to close the current scheme and introduce a new scheme, the Child and Adult Public Dental Scheme, is stalled in the Senate until after the election. This means that the scheme won’t be closing or changing until after the election, at least. This disclaimer on the goverment website labels the new scheme: “…this Budget measure is subject to the passage of legislation”, and therefore there is no guarantee of which scheme will eventuate (as at 18 June 2016). Please check for updates on these dental schemes at the official government websites here and here