Six more dental practices to end their NHS contracts

MORE THAN 6,000 AFFECTED AS SITUATION BRANDED 'BARBARIC'

- By ANDREW FORGRAVE

Patients are travelling out of Wales for dental treatment, says Welsh Conservatives leader Darren Millar

SIX more dental practices in North Wales are to terminate their NHS contracts from March 31 this year - half of them in Gwynedd.

According to Clwyd West MS Darren Millar, a total of 6,670 patients will be affected, equivalent to around 3% of the region's dental activity.

The leader of the Welsh Conservatives expressed "deep concern" over the loss of so many dental practices at a time when provision is already under pressure.

Mr Millar said most of the affected practices blamed the Welsh Government's new contract model for dentists, which is due to be implemented in April.

He said NHS dental provision in North Wales was becoming "extremely concerning"

"I have constituents who travel to Scotland in order to access an NHS dentist and others who are travelling to Albania to get their teeth sorted," he said. "There are even people pulling their own teeth out because they can't access a dentist. It is absolutely barbaric in this day and age, and the situation seems to be getting worse by the day."

The six practices are: