DENTISTS’ BILL

Grey River Argus, 16 October 1936, Page 11

DENTISTS’ BILL

Higher Charges FOBECAST BY AUCKLANDEB. (Per Press Association). AUUCKLAND, October 15. Basing his judgment on opinions he heard expressed in Sydney, recently, an Auckland dentist, Mr T. E. Bridger, stated that he believed the Dentists’ Bill, recently introduced by the Government, would have an effect the reverse of what its advocates expected. Mr Bridger left for Wellington, yesterday, to place his views before the Health Committee, to which the Bill has been referred. Introduced by the New South Wales Government about, twelve mouths ago. M r Bridger said, the Dentists’ Act now operating in that State was even more rigid, particularly in the prohibition of advertising by dentists, than was the Act brought before the New Zealand! House of Representatives, but its aims and principles wore practically identical. In the opinion of the majority of dentists, the New Zealand Bill aimed at pushing up the price of deutal work, and, by prohibiting advertising, at taking away some of the work done by advertising dentists, and distribute it among the more conservative members of the profession. . “What I saw in Sydney convinces mo that one of the results the supporters of tho Bill hope from it wi’-l be realised, that is. an increase in prices. The fees for dental work m Sydney have risen sharply since their Act became Jaw. and are still using. In the Sydney laboratories, I saw a lot of work that could not compare with that of the principal advertising dentists in New Zealand, but , was charged for at more than double Now Zealand prices, twelve guineas, for instance, fo r upper and lower dentines. The New South Wales Act had a boomerano- effect. Every conservative nonadvertising dentist I met complained that his practice had decreased. T e reason was that the publicity paid for by advertising firms had made t e public ‘tooth conscious or dentist conscious.’ Now that the publication of such reminders is prohibited people forget that they have teeth, until twinges of pain remind them of the fact. Then the teeth may be too far gone to save.’’ M r Bridger added that the (Sydney dentists were disturbed and anxious.