Message from the President & Registrar
Dear Colleagues,
Dentistry continues to be in the news as the federal government develops its Canada Dental Benefit. The new plan, which will now cover adults as well as children, is targeted to begin by the end of this year. It will be administered by Health Canada with support from a third-party benefits administrator. It will be a different model than the interim plan for children introduced in 2022 which was a CRA (Canada Revenue Agency) payment. Discussion has now broadened to pharmacare and consultations are underway.
Spring has also seen significant developments in regulation in Ontario. After consultation with the profession and approval by Council, the College submitted proposed regulation for an emergency class certificate on May 1st. We expect that regulations for all 26 colleges will be approved by the end of August. We are committed to keeping the profession informed as our working group develops guidance on implementation.
Bill 60 was passed by the Ontario legislature. It enables more procedures to be performed in external clinics that were usually done in hospital. The Bill focuses on making it easier for out-of-province doctors nurses, medical laboratory technologists and respiratory therapists to practice in Ontario. Regulations are currently being drafted. Though the Bill does not impact dentistry, it is an important regulatory trend to note.
Given the improvements in COVID-19 indicators and the declaration by some health agencies that the emergency phase of the pandemic has ended, the RCDSO, in partnership with the other oral health Colleges is prioritizing a re-examination of COVID guidelines. We are keen to have this update to the profession as soon as possible.
As noted in a recent communication to the profession, the first phase of work on the revised e-Portfolio platform is underway and will be ready later this summer. We thank dentists for their patience.
This issue of our newsletter contains some sad news: former RCDSO Registrar Dr. Roger Ellis passed away on April 18th, 2023. Dr. Ellis led a remarkable professional life dedicated to dentistry from practice to education to regulation. An article and obituary on Dr. Ellis follows.
Finally, June was Pride Month, reminding us all about the importance of acceptance, equality and the significance of keeping spaces safe for ourselves, our employees and our patients.
Sincerely,
Dr. Harinder Sandhu and Daniel Faulkner