GN awards new dental services contracts

IQALUIT — The Government of Nunavut has selected two dental companies to provide dental services to residents of the Baffin and Kivalliq regions.

The contracts, which take effect Sept. 1, are for an 18-month period.

The contract for the Baffin region was awarded to Aqsaqniit Dental Services, whose president is David Sudlovenick, an Inuk dental therapist from Iqaluit.

“In David, you have a wealth of experience,” said Raouf Hammoud, dental health specialist for the GN. “This should help in the prevention and promotion of dental health.”

In the Kivalliq region, the contract went to Nunavut Dental Services.

The GN will spend an additional $700,000 on dental care services. Hammoud said this will mean better dental services for Nunavut.

In Cape Dorset, for example, the number of dentist visiting days will increase from 48 to 70 per year. In Baker Lake, the number of days will increase from 85 to 108.

“There’s an increase right across the board,” Hammoud said.

The speed of dental service delivery should also be improved, since Ottawa has agreed to approve requests for services under the Non-Insured Health Benefits plan by fax, a speedier method than before.

Health Canada’s NIHB program pays for health services that must be be provided at no cost to aboriginal people.

The new dental service providers will take over the NIHB billings, taking a load off the territorial government’s administrators. They will also take care of the entire range of dental services for Nunavummiut, from routine dentistry to more complex procedures.

Hammoud said these changes mean that people waiting for dentures should get fitted in on-the-spot from one of the new denturist teams that will travel throughout the regions.

The GN hopes this one-stop approach to dental care will cut down on travel expenses for dental patients.

The new dental service providers will try to get the most out of the basic amount of money Health Canada provides for dental services. This administrative money adds up to around $1.3 million.

It covers expenses such as travel and per diems for visiting dentists, but doesn’t include “fees for service.”

A fee-for-service bill is created each time a dentist treats a patient eligible for coverage under the NIHB, or who has a private insurance plan.

A new call for proposals for dental service delivery in the Kitikmeot Region should be issued soon, Hammoud said.