It is important to take care of kids’ teeth right from the time they come through. It is a parent’s job. Just like you take care of your kids’ eating, sleeping, and pooping habits, you have to look after their precious whites as well. To make sure they are taken well care of, your kids need to visit the dentist regularly. A regular visit to the dentist is an important part of good dental care. To promote and support this healthy habit, the Australian government came up with a scheme called the CBDS.
The Child Dental Benefits Scheme (CDBS) is a program that the Australian government launched to take care of the kids’ teeth. Under this scheme, an allocation of $1000 is provided to the parents to take good care of their kid’s teeth. This amount is provided over a period of two years. If a kid is eligible under the program, he/she can receive regular dental services.
When a parent gets his/her child registered under this scheme, they can easily opt for a wide range of dental services for the child’s teeth. These dental services will cover check-ups, routine cleaning, repairing cracked teeth, fillings and root canals. However, it will not cover orthodontic treatments like getting braces to straighten crooked teeth. In other words, any dental work that needs to be done in a hospital or follows a cosmetic dental procedure will not be covered under this scheme. Also, one more thing you should know is that not all dentists provide services under the CDBS. So, if you want to make sure that your kids’ receive dental service under this scheme, make sure that you check with the dentist before you book an appointment.
Who is eligible for the CDBS Scheme?
The Child Dental Benefits Scheme is managed by Medicare. Your kids can receive dental benefits if he/she is eligible for the scheme. You can verify that by checking whether your kid fulfils the following criteria or not.
- Your child must be eligible for Medicare.
- Your child is between the age range of 2 to 17.
- If your family receives Family Tax Benefit and you receive either Family Tax Benefit Part A or one of the following payments by the Australian Government:
- Double Orphan Pension
- Carer Payment
- Parenting payment
- Youth Allowance
- Disability Support Pension
- Veteran’s Children Education Scheme (VCES) if the child is 16 to 17 years
- ABSTUDY
- Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Act Education and Training Scheme if the child is 16 or over
- Special Benefit
So, is your kid eligible for the program or not? If your kid is, you can receive the information electronically or via a post about the program. However, things are not really clear to you. You can consult a nearby dentist and check out whether your kid can receive the dental benefits or not. The eligibility criteria are assessed at the beginning of every year. So, you or your kid needs to fulfil the criteria for at least one day of the year. If you or your kid becomes eligible in the current year, you can receive the payment for the whole year. Moreover, if you don’t use any money allotted in the first year, it will be carried over to the second year. So, just check out the CDBS criteria and get your kid registered under the scheme.
The Final Takeaway
Just like adults, kids also need proper dental care right from the start. In this way only, they can prolong the lives of their dazzling whites. So, if you want to take good care of your kids’ teeth in Australia, you can get your kid registered under the Child Dental Benefits Scheme. The CDBS is a perfect way to make sure your kids’ whites are taken care of in a cost-effective way. So, without wasting any more time, register your kids under the scheme and enjoy the benefits.