That’s the verdict of John Milne, chair of the British Dental Association’s General Dental Practice Committee, on what is effectively a freeze on dentists’ pay.
John Milne said: ‘General dental practitioners in England face a difficult and uncertain future and will be disappointed by this award for a number of reasons. The costs they incur to provide care are soaring as a result of regulatory changes and the poor position of Sterling. Many will also soon be facing potential clawback of their contract values for 2009/10 as their primary care trusts start to assess completion of UDA targets. Dentists have engaged actively and willingly with the Steele Review process, but the cautious optimism it has generated about the future is likely to be undermined by today’s announcement. For the second year running, the award does not address the real problem of escalating expenses. The decision to ignore the Review Body’s recommendation that efficiency savings should only be considered retrospectively will be viewed with particular concern. Dental practices are already run very efficiently and it is difficult to see where efficiency savings are going to be conjured from. General practitioners were looking for a positive signal about the future of NHS services. They didn’t get it.’