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Medicare Child Dental Benefit
As of June 30, 2016 the Australian Government Medicare Child Dental Benefit will no longer be available to Australian families.
The Medicare Child Dental Benefit scheme started in January 2014 and offers financial support for basic dental services for children aged 2–17. Eligible families, teenagers and approved care organisations received a letter to confirm eligibility.
Don’t worry if you have lost your letter of eligibility; give the Human Services team a call and they can look it up for you.
The 3 Eligibility Basics:
Children aged between 2–17 years on any one day of the calendar year
Family, guardian or carer receives certain government benefits, such as Family Tax Benefit Part A for at least part of the calendar year
Are eligible for Medicare
What Can You Claim?
Under the Medicare Child Dental Benefit Scheme, basic dental services are capped at $1,000 per child over two consecutive calendar years. If you do not use all of your $1,000 benefit in the first year of eligibility, you can use it in the second year if you are still eligible. Any remaining balance will not be carried forward at the end of the second year.
Benefits cover a range of services including examinations, x-rays, cleaning, fissure sealing, fillings, root canals and extractions.
What Can’t You Claim?
Benefits are not available for orthodontic or cosmetic dental work and cannot be paid for any services provided in a hospital.
Medicare Child Dental Benefit Schedule services will not count towards the Medicare Safety Net or the Extended Medicare Safety Net thresholds.
You cannot claim a benefit under the Medicare Child Dental Benefit Schedule and from your private health insurer for the same dental service.
How You Make a Claim?
To use your Medicare Child Dental Benefit Voucher at Harris Dental Boutique you will need to pay the account and then claim your benefit from Medicare.
To submit your claim with Medicare, follow these steps:
Download the Medicare claim form and post it to the Department of Human Services GPO Box 9822 in your capital city or placing it in the drop-box at one of the Medicare service centres
Visit your local Medicare Service Centre
Call 132 011
There has been no announcement if there will be anything replacing the Medicare Dental Benefit Scheme, so if you would like to use your Medicare Child Dental Benefit voucher please contact the Harris Dental Boutique team.
Prevent Dental Decay
Nutrients Naturally Present in Milk, Cheese and Yoghurt, Such as Calcium, Casein and Phosphorus Play an Important Role in Helping Prevent Dental Decay.
I know a lot of people who will be very pleased about this!
We all know that dairy products like milk, cheese and yoghurt are good for our bones but did you know that they also help in the prevention of tooth decay?
According to Nutrition Australia, newly-released research has confirmed that these foods help fight gum disease and prevent tooth decay.
Excellent news for us cheese lovers! Not sure the wine that I drink with my cheese platter helps too much?!
Tooth decay forms in holes in the protective surface of your teeth. The sticky film of bacteria and sugars that form on your teeth is called plaque. When you eat or drink sugary items the bacteria in your plaque produces an acid that dissolves the tooth’s surface.
Your saliva is a natural defence against sugar.
The calcium and phosphate present help replace the minerals on your tooth’s surface. If you have too many “acids attacks,” your saliva won’t have enough time to repair the damage and eventually a hole will develop and tooth decay.
So, all the more reason to eat more cheese, yoghurt and milk!
Eating and drinking play an important role in the prevention of tooth decay.
If you consume too much sugary food and drinks it will increase the development of tooth decay.
Tips – What to eat and drink to help prevent dental decay.
Drink plenty of tap water, as it usually has a higher level of fluoride than bottled water.
Give your children water or milk, but not flavoured!
Consume healthy snacks like yoghurt, cheese, fresh fruit, vegetables.
Eat hard cheese after meals to protect your teeth.
Limit sugary products like soft drinks, sports/energy drinks, cordials, fruit juices..
Remember, for good dental health and to help prevent dental decay, see a dentist for a check-up at least once a year and always use a fluoridated toothpaste.
Why Is My New Denture Loose?
“I had dentures for 15 years without a problem, and since I got these new ones, they are loose and I cannot chew!”
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The First Problem Is Adaptation
The mouth changes over time. It changes slowly, and your brain is easily able to adapt to these changes since they are occurring so slowly that you don’t notice.
The gums and bone are shrinking slowly.
The teeth are wearing. The distance from your chin to your nose is reducing as the gums and teeth get shorter so you have to close your mouth further to get your teeth to touch (this is why really worn dentures make you look older because they make your scrunch your face up to get your teeth to touch).
When we make new dentures, we correct all these problems at once. It is not uncommon for the height of the gums and the teeth to reduce by up to half a centimetre with old dentures.
This means that the patient new dentures need to be 5 – 6mm bigger to compensate.
Imagine how big a change this is for the automatic program in your brain that controls chewing to deal with.
We know that everyone’s chewing function reduces for up to six weeks with new dentures, no matter how good they are.
Your tongue and lips and cheeks are also very important to holding your denture in position, so a lot of time is taken for your brain to reprogram to get used to the new shape of the denture.
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The Second Problem Is Expectations.
Often your old denture is also loose, but you think it is just because the denture is old. Surely if it fits like a new one, it will be stable. Nope.
Often looseness is due to the shape of the mouth, and a new denture may not fix this problem.
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The Third Problem Is the Way the Gums Shrink.
Around the lower jaw, there are a lot of muscles. The lip, tongue and cheeks are all muscles that move a lot.
When the teeth are just extracted, the jaw is very big and pokes a long way above the muscles so it is very stable. As the jaw shrinks down lower, the top of the jaw is closer to the muscles and the movement of these muscles is more likely to bump the denture.
This is a problem that cannot be fixed with new dentures and no matter how many adjustments you get, the denture will still pop up when you chew, laugh or speak.
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The Fourth Problem Is a Design Issue.
The part of the denture that pokes down either side of the jaw is called the flange.
On the lower, when you take the mould of the patient’s mouth, their tongue is sitting down. However, as soon as they speak, the tongue lifts up.
If the flange of the denture pokes down too far, the tongue will press on it and lift the denture out as you speak or eat.
This is the most common problem that we find. In this case, the flanges need to be trimmed back so that the tongue cannot lift them.
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Lastly, the Bite.
If the teeth do not all hit at the same time with a solid thunk, then the denture will tilt. Having some teeth hit harder than others is a big problem that will cause pain, and dentures that move about all the time.
The bite is not easy to check, as the pressure of the bite will make them tilt and then hit together more evenly
If the bite and the flanges are correct, and after a period of time, you still cannot get used to the dentures, it means your brain is not wanting to reprogram to the new dentures, or the shape of your mouth does not allow you to have stable dentures.
Most of the time it is flanges or bites that are the problem when it comes to dentures, but some people may need implants to get any comfort.
How to Stop Easter From Rotting Your Teeth?
Dr Linc reveals how to stop Easter from rotting your teeth.
Easter for most is all about chocolate – lots and lots of it! Delicious as they are, the Easter eggs and chocolately recipes that are made every Easter season inject our systems with sugar.
Are you worried about your teeth during Easter? Do you suffer every time you eat something sweet?
Here Are Dr Linc’s Expert Tips on How to Limit the Damage to Your Teeth This Easter Weekend.
Don’t stop your routine
Make sure during Easter weekend that you don’t forget your usual brushing and cleaning routine. The worst thing you could do is to stop brushing! Good Friday to Easter Monday is the prime time you will be indulging in dinners out, sugary snacks, chocolate and alcohol; all of these can damage your teeth if you ditch your regular routine.
Time for ‘treat o’clock’
Let’s face it, you are going to be eating sweets and chocolate over Easter. However, you can minimise the damage it causes your teeth by using the “treat o’clock” method. Limit your treats to specific times, such as for dessert straight after meals. This will limit the exposure of sugar on your teeth, rather than continuously snacking on Easter eggs all day long.
What is World Oral Health Day?
World Oral Health Day (WOHD) is celebrated all around the world every year on 20 March. WOHD celebrates the benefits of a healthy mouth, promotes the issues around poor oral health, and teaches the importance of oral hygiene for teeth, young and old.
Traditionally, World Oral Health Day is a day full of activities that make patients laugh, sing and smile!
Why Is WOHD Important?
WOHD is important because 90% of the world’s population will suffer from oral diseases in their lifetime – and many of these are avoidable.
WOHD offers dentists a platform to take action and help reduce the overall oral health disease burden in their community.
In 2010, Dr Linc established the Free Dental Health Days in Bundaberg, offering free dental treatment to patients to help reduce the waiting list on the public system and to those who can not afford to pay for private dental treatment.
What is the theme for 2016 WOHD?
WOHD 2016 aims to recognise the impact oral health has on overall physical health and wellbeing and to help inspire everyone for a positive change. The 2016 campaign message is: It all starts here. Healthy mouth. Healthy body!
This powerful and engaging message is rooted in the global truth of oral health’s importance, galvanising the audience to drive a movement for change.