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  • Average dental charges 2010
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Average dental charges 2011

The information contained in Table 1 – 'Average dental charges for privately insured services in 2011' has been collected by the Department of Health and Ageing, and publicly released to help consumers make more informed decisions when purchasing services and encourage greater competition in the private health industry.

In 2010-11, private health insurers paid $1.65 billion for dental services of the $3.22 billion they paid for all general treatment services. Insurers pay more benefits for dental services than any other type of general treatment, amounting to almost 51%, followed by optical at 18%. While consumers are aware of gaps between dental charges and the amount paid by their health insurer, there is little information available about average dental charges.

Guide to Dental Services Reported

Table 1 contains a list of 21 common dental services by the Australian Dental Association (ADA) code and the average charge within each state/territory based on consumers place of residence. It is important to note that charges within each state/territory will vary depending on location. (eg. major city, inner regional or remote). 

A description of each item can be found in Table 2 – 'Description of ADA Code'. Table 2 segments each ADA code into the following categories of dentistry:

• Diagnostic
• Preventative
• Oral Surgery
• Restorative
• Crowns

This list of dental services may be expanded in the future, depending on data availability and consumer demands.

Origin of Data

De-identified data was provided by private health insurers to the Department of Health and Ageing for the following dental services provided to privately insured patients in 2011, which was obtained as part of the claiming process.

Table 1 - Average dental charges for privately insured services during 2011