Dental Tourism in Britain Booms While More Eastern European Dentists Arrive Looking for Work

Britons Choose Medical Vacations to treat Their Choppers

Dental tourism counts for about half of the medical tourism sector in Britain.  Close to 50,000 Britons every year make the trip to Bulgaria, Poland, Romania, and other East European countries where the cost of dental caps are less than half of what one would pay back home. This situation is slightly bizarre when you count the considerable numbers of dentist and dental hygienists from these countries who work in Britain. Nevertheless, the industry is flush with the cash of Britons who return from their medical vacations, all flashy toothed and happy.  

Costs of Dental Whitening, Caps and Filings are Low, and Standards are Comparable

There seem to be marked sub-categorized preferences even within the dental tourism industry in Britain.  The market points to specific destinations that specialized in particular dental procedures.  Tooth whitening seems to be the specialty of Turkey, and other countries like Latvia and Poland have their own menu of treatments that Britons who don’t want to wait a couple of years for a filling at an NHS center can look forward to.   

Dental Tourism in Britain Flourishes As More Dentists Abandon NHS

While the reasons for the boom in American patients seeking health and dental care overseas are well documented, in Britain, the reasons for the phenomenon are slightly more complex.  In April 2006, the government enforced new contracts that limited the amount a dentist could claim from the NHS.  This lead to many dentists leaving the NHS and setting up private practices.  The Department of Health estimates that the number of people with access to the NHS network has declined sharply by at least 47,000 people since 2006.  That number is only expected to rise.  As long as the number of people without access to NHS dentists remains so high, dental tourism abroad will continue to flourish.