Canada’s long-promised Canadian Dental Care Plan (CDCP) is facing serious growing pains — and experts say the system may already be buckling just months after expanding to millions of adults.
Launched to provide subsidized dental coverage for Canadians without workplace benefits, the CDCP has enrolled about five million people since its rollout began. But according to Health Canada, nearly two million of those eligible have yet to use the services. Adding to the turmoil, a recent administrative blunder mistakenly classified 70,000 applicants — some were wrongly approved, others denied coverage entirely.
“This doesn’t surprise me,” said Donna Wells, manager of Professional Practice at the Canadian Dental Hygienists Association (CDHA). “Some dentists haven’t even registered as providers under CDCP because they’re already at full capacity. The rollout was rushed, and we’re still seeing major administrative challenges.”
Wells noted reports of confusion and even misuse — including patients attempting to combine CDCP subsidies with private insurance. “There’s definitely some abuse happening,” she said.
The federal Health Ministry confirmed the income-calculation error but said a system fix is already in place. “We are committed to ensuring that programs like the CDCP are administered with integrity and responsible stewardship of public funds,” the ministry said in a statement.
But many within the dental community say the problems run deeper. Dr. David Brown, president of the Ontario Dental Association (ODA), believes the government expanded the plan too fast, before sufficient staffing and administrative systems were ready. “We asked Health Canada not to expand too quickly. We needed proper staffing and secure details first,” he said.
Brown also criticized how Ottawa promoted the program as “free,” when in reality, it requires a co-pay of 40 to 60 per cent for many participants. “That was a major misplay,” he said. “It’s not free care — it’s a subsidy.”
He warned that if employers begin cutting private dental coverage — which currently covers about two-thirds of Canadians — and push workers onto the CDCP, the system could “snap” under the additional strain.
While Brown blames a lack of dental professionals for access issues, Wells disagrees. “We know numerous dental hygienists are graduating every year, and that number is increasing,” she countered.
Both experts agree on one point: without major restructuring, the CDCP’s future looks grim. Brown says he and other industry leaders have raised these concerns directly with the federal Health Minister, urging a full review of the plan.
“The government needs to go over every detail and make sure nothing gets skipped or dropped,” Brown said. “Things are moving forward — just not with the care and attention needed to keep this program from falling apart.”