As a parent, you want the best health care for your child—dental care included. The Australian government acknowledges this need and offers the Child Dental Benefits Schedule (CDBS) to help families get access to basic dental care. The scheme provides financial assistance in dental care for children to make oral care more affordable when your family is in most need.
Understanding how the CDBS works can help you make optimal choices about your child’s oral health and could save you hundreds of dollars in treatment costs.
The Child Dental Benefits Schedule: A Description
The Child Dental Benefits Schedule is a scheme funded by the government in which up to $1,026 worth of benefits in two calendar years is provided for basic dental care. The scheme was introduced to provide preventive and general dental care to children of eligible families without the parents incurring economic costs.
The program operates on a two-year cycle, and the parents are eligible to claim the benefits between 1 January to 31 December of every cycle. The parents can claim these benefits from any participating dental practitioner, including private dental clinics and public dental clinics across Australia.
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Who Can Use These Benefits?
Your child may be entitled to the CDBS if he/she meets some conditions set by the Australian government. Your child must be between 2 and 17 years old to qualify for it, and you must receive some government payments.
The eligible families are those receiving Family Tax Benefit Part A, receiving Family Tax Benefit Part A at the maximum rate, or where the child is receiving, in their own right, a government payment. The scheme also covers children in out-of-home care arrangements.
Your child will automatically qualify when you meet these requirements, and you will be sent a letter by Services Australia saying that they are eligible. The letter will include important information about how to claim the benefits and participating providers in your area.
Dental Services Included Within the Program
The CDBS offers a broad spectrum of basic dental services that children in most cases need. They are intended to help maintain good oral health and handle common dental problems before such issues can become complex.
Preventive care consists of exams, cleaning, fluoride, and dental sealants. They maintain the health of your child’s mouth and keep cavities from forming. Check-ups enable dentists to catch problems early, which can save pain and money later.
The plan also entails restorative procedures such as fillings, root canal therapy, and extractions when called for. If your child needs orthodontics, part of the services may be paid for, but this tends to be in serious cases and not for purely cosmetic alignment issues.
Another significant feature of the CDBS is emergency dental care. If your child has dental pain or dental trauma, the program provides access to emergency consultation and urgent care.
Getting Started with Your Child’s Dental Care
It is simple to access the CDBS when you know how. Start by finding a participating provider for dental appointments available in Manly, for example—you can find providers on the Services Australia website or by calling their helpline.
When you schedule an appointment for your child, let the dental clinic know that you intend to use CDBS benefits. The practitioner can check your child’s eligibility and can bulk bill treatment in most instances, meaning that you will not have to pay the expenses upfront.
Track benefits used during the two-year period as the $1,026 limit is against the period as a whole. Your dentist can work out how much you have remaining and plan treatments accordingly.
Routine visits to the dentist are important to the oral health of your child. The CDBS makes the visits more affordable, so your family can receive quality dental care that lays the foundation for oral health habits for a lifetime.
