What the Child Dental Benefits Schedule actually covers

A lot of families in Wagga are entitled to the Child Dental Benefits Schedule and do not know it, or assume it is means tested in a way that rules them out. It is worth two minutes of checking, because for many children it covers the whole of their routine dental care.

Here is what it is, who gets it, and where its edges are.

What the CDBS actually is

It is a Medicare benefit, not a concession card and not a rebate you claim back later. It provides a capped amount of basic dental care per eligible child, used across two consecutive calendar years.

The amount is set by the government and is adjusted from time to time, so it is worth confirming the current figure with Services Australia rather than relying on a number you read somewhere. Any unused balance at the end of the two year period does not roll over.

Who is eligible

Two things need to be true in the same calendar year. The child needs to be aged between 0 and 17 for at least one day of that year, and the child or their family needs to receive an eligible government payment.

Family Tax Benefit Part A is the most common route, which is why many more families qualify than expect to. Several other payments also count. Eligibility is assessed each calendar year, so a family who did not qualify two years ago may well qualify now, and the reverse is also true.

Services Australia writes to families who qualify, but letters get lost and circumstances change mid year. Checking directly is more reliable than waiting for the post.

What it covers

The schedule is built around keeping teeth healthy rather than around appearance:

• Examinations and check-ups
• X-rays
• Cleaning and scaling
• Fissure sealants, which protect the grooves of back teeth before decay starts
• Fillings
• Root canal treatment
• Extractions

That is most of what a child under eighteen actually needs.

What it does not cover

Orthodontics is the big one. Braces and aligners sit entirely outside the scheme, and that surprises a lot of parents who assumed it was included.

Cosmetic work is excluded, and so is dental treatment provided in a hospital setting. If your child needs treatment under general anaesthetic, the scheme does not cover the hospital side of that, which is worth knowing before you plan around it.

Is a dental clean covered by Medicare for adults too?

No, and this is a common point of confusion. For most adults, Medicare does not cover routine dental care at all. Private health extras cover is the usual route, or the public dental system if you hold an eligible concession card.

The CDBS is a specific exception for children, which is part of why it is worth using before it expires.

How to check your child's balance

You can see the remaining balance through your Medicare online account via myGov, or in the Express Plus Medicare app. You can also ring Services Australia.

Or simply ask us. We can check eligibility and the remaining balance before any treatment starts, so you know where you stand rather than finding out afterwards. We would always rather have that conversation at the beginning.

Using it well

If your child is eligible, the most useful thing the benefit buys is not a filling. It is the check-up and the fissure sealants that stop the filling being needed at all.

Children who come in regularly from a young age tend to need far less done to them later, and they tend to grow up without the fear that brings so many adults to us after a decade away. That is the real value of the scheme, and it is free to use.

Related reading: our children’s dentistry page. whether baby teeth with holes need filling.