Nearly 70K Canada Dental Care Plan claims were later found ineligible
More than $6.6 million was paid out under the Canada Dental Care Plan for claims later deemed ineligible, with the program’s overall cost projected to exceed its budget by more than 50 per cent.
More than $6.6 million was paid out under the Canada Dental Care Plan for claims later deemed ineligible, with the program’s overall cost projected to exceed its budget by more than 50 per cent this year.
The Department of Health blamed computer errors “by individuals who were incorrectly informed of their eligibility” for the multi-million dollar mistake.
Records of “68,081 claims valued at $6,615,553” came to light following an Inquiry Of Ministry tabled in the Commons at the request of Conservative MP Branden Leslie, which was first covered by Blacklocks Reporter.
The inquiry followed testimony last month from assistant deputy health minister Lynne René de Cotret at the Senate national finance committee.
She said six million Canadians had successfully enrolled in the program this year and 2.4 million had already filed claims.
However, Cotret expects that number to “continue to grow by the end of the fiscal year” as people receive dental care daily.
“Every day we realize more people are going to see their dentist. We expect by the end of the year that number will continue to rise. That is why we asked for some advance funds,” she said.
“What we have seen is there has been pent-up demand that has been greater than we initially anticipated,” said de Cotret. “We started off with seniors. In large part they haven’t seen an oral health care provider in so many years, so there were a lot of fillings. We had a lot of dentures we provided.”
While payments were originally projected to reach $3.2 billion this year, the department’s latest figure was adjusted to $4.8 billion.
When Leslie asked how many individuals received an incorrect notice of eligibility, he was informed that “no one who was mistakenly notified of their eligibility was requested to repay any accounts.”
“In September an error was identified with the automated calculation of adjusted family net income, one of the criteria used to determine eligibility for the Canadian Dental Care Plan,” the Inquiry stated.
Eligibility was limited to Canadians with a household income below $90,000 a year and no current private insurance.