Canadian Dental Care Plan Annual Report 2024-2025

On this page

• Executive summary
• In this report
• CDCP overview
• Applications and member enrolment
• Member access to care and benefit expenditures
• Oral health provider participation
• Conclusion
• Appendices

Executive summary

The Canadian Dental Care Plan (CDCP) is a federally funded initiative introduced in December 2023 to make oral health care more affordable for eligible Canadian residents.

The plan, one of the largest social programs in Canadian history, helps to reduce costs of oral health care services to individuals who have no private dental insurance and have an adjusted family net income below $90,000. By targeting financial barriers, the CDCP seeks to increase access to oral health care and improve oral health outcomes for its members.

Health Canada introduced the CDCP in stages. Initially, it was launched for people age 65 and over, followed by children under the age of 18 and adults ages 18 to 64 with a valid Disability Tax Credit (DTC) certificate. Health Canada also introduced the range of services covered by the plan in stages, with most being available in May 2024. In November 2024, Health Canada expanded the plan to include additional services requiring preauthorization before treatment. 

This gradual rollout was intentional, as it allowed the CDCP to help targeted populations while also making the onboarding process easier for both members and oral health providers. By May 2025, the plan was opened to all eligible individuals.  

During the first benefit period, from May 1, 2024 to June 30, 2025, close to 3.6 million people became CDCP members. More than 2 million members used their coverage to receive oral health care. Over 90% of eligible oral health providers across Canada participated in the CDCP by providing care to members.

Collaboration with federal, provincial and territorial governments, national stakeholders, and partners was essential to the implementation and delivery of the CDCP. This collaboration continued throughout the plan’s first year, allowing Health Canada to receive valuable feedback that supported the rollout.

To reach eligible Canadian residents and to educate members and providers about the plan, Health Canada undertook a broad range of outreach, educational and promotional activities. These included direct mail communications to eligible residents, national advertising campaigns, multilingual information products, and information sessions with oral health professionals and providers.

Early feedback from members and providers indicates that the plan is starting to meet members’ oral health needs. In its first year, the CDCP paid $2.1 billion toward oral health services. For many members, this was the first time they received oral health care in several years.

“I got my dental card in the mail, and I was so relieved to know I could finally get the care I needed to fix my cavity. I didn't have to search every corner of my purse to cover the cost. Instead, I was able to move forward with my treatment.”

“I'm getting to know clients who are getting care under the CDCP and it makes it real. Many of these seniors haven't received dental care in the last 20 or 30 years.”

“For most of my CDCP patients, receiving new dentures gave them not only the opportunity to smile again but also the ability to bite into life!”

In this report

This is the first annual report on the CDCP. It presents the key milestones and outcomes from the plan’s first benefit period. It offers an overview of the CDCP, including Health Canada’s collaboration with stakeholders and partner organizations in the delivery of services. The report examines:

• plan enrolment
• plan use
• service costs and claims processing
• the level of participation among oral health providers

It also describes how Health Canada rolled out the plan and made improvements in response to stakeholder feedback.

The appendices provide additional details including:

• data notes
• implementation milestones
• data on oral health care access and oral health status

Benefit period covered in this report

The first CDCP benefit period ran from May 1, 2024, to June 30, 2025. It was designed to support the plan’s phased rollout. It covered members who could receive services in the first benefit period, including people:

• age 65 and older
• ages 18 to 64 with a valid DTC certificate
• under the age of 18

CDCP overview

Objective, description and eligibility

The CDCP aims to reduce financial barriers to oral health care for eligible Canadian residents by helping cover the cost of dental services. Canadian residents with lower family incomes are less likely to have dental insurance and tend to experience higher rates of oral health problems and greater difficulty accessing care.^{Footnote 1}

Four main criteria determine eligibility for the CDCP:

• being a Canadian resident for tax purposes
• an adjusted family net income^{Footnote 2} below $90,000
• not having access to private dental insurance or coverage
• having filed tax returns in Canada for the previous year so that family net income can be assessed

Under the plan, oral health providers are reimbursed directly for services, following the guidelines set out in the CDCP Dental Benefits Guide and CDCP dental benefit grids. Members should not pay the full cost of care upfront. However, they may be responsible for a co-payment based on their income tier or additional fees if:

• they want care not covered by the CDCP
• the cost of their oral health care services is more than what the CDCP will cover for these services

Individuals enrolled in the CDCP can still benefit from other public oral health programs. These include provincial or territorial plans or a federal plan like the Indigenous Services Canada Non-Insured Health Benefits program. Most programs also coordinate benefits with the CDCP.^{Footnote 3}

For a complete timeline of key milestones in benefit period 2024-2025, refer to Appendix A.

CDCP administration and service delivery partners

Several federal government departments work together, along with key partners, to deliver the CDCP.

Health Canada (Oral Health Branch) leads the plan by setting policy, providing oversight and monitoring performance.

Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) and Service Canada manage application and renewal intake, verify eligibility and support members through online, phone and in‑person service channels. Service Canada is the service delivery organization of ESDC and we will refer to them as Service Canada in the remainder of the report.

The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) provides income tax data and information on dental insurance coverage collected through employer and pension plan administrator tax filings.^{Footnote 4}

Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) oversees contracting.

Sun Life provides dental claims processing services, enrolls approved applicants and oral health providers, issues member cards and manages preauthorization requests.

Oral health providers deliver care to members, submit claims for reimbursement, prepare preauthorization requests for services that require them and coordinate benefits with other programs when needed.

Provincial and territorial (PT) governments work with Health Canada to enable the coordination of benefits between the CDCP and provincial and territorial dental programs.

Applications and member enrolment

The CDCP was launched in phases.

Table 1 shows key dates when each group could apply for the CDCP and begin accessing services through the plan.  

Table 1: Rollout timeline of the CDCP

Group eligible to apply	Date applications opened for the CDCP	Earliest coverage start date
Ages 87 and older	December 2023	May 2024
Ages 77 to 86	January 2024	May 2024
Ages 72 to 76	February 2024	May 2024
Ages 70 to 71	March 2024	May 2024
Ages 65 to 69	May 2024	July 2024
Ages 18 to 64 with a valid DTC certificate	June 2024	August 2024
Children up to age 17	June 2024	August 2024
All adults ages 18 to 64Footnote 5	May 2025	June 2025

As applications opened, Health Canada and Service Canada launched educational activities and promotional materials to raise awareness of the plan. This included:

• postcards
• promotional toolkits
• national advertising campaigns
• factsheets in multiple languages
• a website with information on eligibility criteria and how to apply
• information sessions for oral health professionals, provincial and territorial governments, and various advocacy and community organizations

People age 87 and older were the first invited to apply. They received letters with instructions to apply by phone through an automated phone Interactive Voice Response system or in-person at a Service Canada Centre. To enhance user experience, Service Canada expanded the ways people could apply, making it possible to apply online in May 2024 through the CDCP application tool.

Following confirmation of their eligibility, individuals were enrolled in the plan and received a letter from Service Canada with their member ID, coverage start date and co-payment level. Sun Life sent a welcome package with a member ID card afterwards.

This represents approximately 75% of the estimated eligible population that could apply in benefit period 2024-2025.^{Footnote 7}

Among those enrolled, the largest group was age 65 and older, followed by children under 18, and adults with a valid DTC certificate (Table 2).

Table 2: Total number of enrolled CDCP members and proportion (%) of the Canadian target population that became a CDCP member, by age group in benefit period 2024-2025

Age group	Number of enrolled membersTable 2 Footnote a	% of the target population enrolled in the CDCP
Under 18	478,700	55%
18 to 64 (DTC certificate only)	101,700	68%
65 and older	2,977,000	80%
Total	3,557,400	75%
Table 2 Footnote a Note that figures are rounded. Table 2 Return to footnote a referrer

When comparing enrolment by province and territory, British Columbia, Alberta, Ontario and Nova Scotia had a higher share of the estimated CDCP target population who became CDCP members than the national average (Table 3). Compared to Health Canada's estimates, the territories saw the lowest percentage of enrolled members. Possible explanations for the lower enrolment in the territories include:

• existing challenges accessing oral health providers
• high public insurance coverage in the North
• the introduction of new public dental programs in some territories since insurance coverage data was collected

Results also showed that most CDCP members resided in urban areas (approximately 81%) as compared to rural areas (approximately 18%).^{Footnote 9}

Table 3: Total number of enrolled CDCP members and proportion (%) of the Canadian target population that became a CDCP member, by province and territory in benefit period 2024-2025

Province or territory	Number of enrolled CDCP membersTable 3 Footnote a	% of the target population enrolled in the CDCP
British Columbia	462,700	84%
Alberta	209,500	80%
Saskatchewan	70,300	59%
Manitoba	106,000	58%
Ontario	1,294,200	79%
Quebec	1,150,500	70%
New Brunswick	80,300	65%
Nova Scotia	105,200	77%
Prince Edward Island	13,000	71%
Newfoundland and Labrador	63,900	75%
Northwest Territories/Nunavut/YukonTable 3 Footnote b	1,600	27%
Total	3,557,400	75%
Table 3 Footnote a Note that figures are rounded. Individual rounded values may not sum to the total due to rounding. Table 3 Return to footnote a referrer Table 3 Footnote b For confidentiality purposes, due to lower numbers, the Northwest Territories, Nunavut and Yukon data have been combined. Table 3 Return to footnote b referrer

Most members (approximately 87%) were in co-payment tier 3, where 100% of eligible service costs are covered at the CDCP established fee rate. This means that most CDCP members didn’t have a co-payment. However, members may still have paid fees if:

• the cost of their oral health care services was more than what the CDCP reimbursed for the services
• the member and their oral health provider agreed to services that the CDCP didn’t cover

Approximately 7% of members had 40% co-payments (tier 2) and 6% had 60% co-payments (tier 1).

Results showed that over two-thirds (70%) of enrolled members indicated English as their preferred first official language, while almost a third (30%) indicated French. A mid-benefit period analysis (December 2024) showed approximately 43% of CDCP members identified as men+ and 57% as women+. As well, more than half of members age 15 or older (approximately 54%) hadn’t completed education beyond a high school diploma.

For more information on how Health Canada calculated these estimates, visit Appendix C.^{Footnote 10}

Health Canada continues to monitor SGBA Plus findings, regional variation and applicant feedback to better understand plan uptake and use.

Member access to care and benefit expenditures

Accessing care

Through the CDCP, members receive help covering the costs of a range of oral health care services such as:

• diagnostic and preventive services (for example, x-rays, cleanings, fluoride applications)
• restorative services (for example, permanent and temporary fillings)
• endodontic services (for example, root canal treatments)
• periodontal services (for example, non-surgical gum disease management)
• removable prosthodontic services (for example, dentures)
• oral surgery
• sedation and other adjunctive services

Plan use was comparable for members:

• whose first official language was French (56%) or English (59%)
• in different co-payment tiers
  • 58% for those with an adjusted family net income under $70,000
  • 61% for those with an adjusted family net income between $70,000 and $79,999
  • 61% for those with an adjusted family net income between $80,000 and $89,999

However, more members age 65 and older used their coverage than children under 18 and adults with a DTC certificate (Table 4). This may be in part due to their earlier access to applications and services in benefit period 2024-2025. Some children may have also recently received oral health care with support from the Canada Dental Benefit. This was an interim program for children under 12 and provided payments to help cover the cost of care until June 30, 2024.   

Table 4: Total number and share (%) of CDCP members who used their coverage, by age group in benefit period 2024-2025

Age group	Number of CDCP members who received at least one serviceTable 4 Footnote a	% of CDCP members within the age group who received at least one service
Under 18	217,700	45%
18 to 64 (DTC certificate only)	50,800	50%
65 and older	1,807,700	61%
Total	2,076,200	58%
Table 4 Footnote a Note that figures are rounded. Table 4 Return to footnote a referrer

Plan use varied regionally, with at least 60% of members in British Columbia and 64% in Ontario using their coverage compared to 20% in the territories (Table 5). Results indicate there could be non-financial access barriers or use of other public coverage impacting plan use among members in the territories, New Brunswick, Alberta and Saskatchewan.

Plan use was slightly higher among members living in urban areas (59%) compared to those living in rural areas (55%) of Canada.

Table 5: Total share (%) of CDCP members who used their coverage, by province and territory, in benefit period 2024-2025

Province or territory	% of CDCP members who received at least one service
British Columbia	60%
Alberta	49%
Saskatchewan	49%
Manitoba	53%
Ontario	64%
Quebec	56%
New Brunswick	47%
Nova Scotia	53%
Prince Edward Island	54%
Newfoundland and Labrador	54%
Northwest Territories/Nunavut/YukonTable 5 Footnote a	20%
National	58%
Table 5 Footnote a For confidentiality purposes, due to lower numbers, the Northwest Territories, Nunavut and Yukon data have been combined. Table 5 Return to footnote a referrer

SGBA Plus applied to plan use data mid-way through the benefit period (December 2024) showed more women+ had used their coverage (46%) compared to men+ (42%). Plan use was also higher among those with a bachelor’s degree or higher (52%) compared to those with a high school diploma (45%) or less (40%).

Spending per member

For many members, this may have been the first time they received oral health care in several years. This means they likely had higher care needs. Providers may also have been able to offer recommended treatments that were previously unaffordable for their patients.

By fall 2024, CDCP members saved an average of $800 per year on their oral health services. Towards the end of June, average savings increased to $1,020. This is due to:

• members returning for more appointments within the year
• services that require preauthorization being introduced in November
  • these services are, on average, more expensive than services that don’t require preauthorization

Compared to children under 18, adults age 18 to 64 with a valid DTC certificate and those age 65 and older had higher average expenditures (Table 6). This reflects the:

• use of more costly treatments, such as dentures, to address oral health needs
• extended time people older than 65 could use their CDCP coverage to access care in benefit period 2024-2025 compared to children and adults with a valid DTC certificate

Table 6: Total number of CDCP members who used their coverage, total benefit expenditure, and per capita benefit expenditure, by age group in benefit period 2024-2025

Age group	Number of CDCP members who received at least one serviceTable 6 Footnote a	Total benefit expenditureTable 6 Footnote a	Per capita benefit expenditureTable 6 Footnote a
Under 18	217,700	$137,400,000	$630
18 to 64 (DTC certificate only)	50,800	$50,000,000	$990
65 and older	1,807,700	$1,938,800,000	$1,070
National	2,076,200	$2,126,200,000	$1,020
Table 6 Footnote a Note that figures are rounded. Table 6 Return to footnote a referrer

Per capita expenditure also varied by a member’s province or territory. Ontario, Saskatchewan and Newfoundland and Labrador had the highest spending per member, while New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island had the lowest (Table 7).

Table 7: Total number of CDCP members who used their coverage, total benefit expenditure and per capita benefit expenditure, by province and territory in benefit period 2024-2025

Province or territory	Number of CDCP members who received at least one serviceTable 7 Footnote a	Total benefit expenditureTable 7 Footnote a	Per capita benefit expenditureTable 7 Footnote a
British Columbia	277,800	$289,400,000	$1,040
Alberta	102,400	$108,300,000	$1,060
Saskatchewan	34,100	$38,400,000	$1,130
Manitoba	56,500	$46,400,000	$820
Ontario	823,600	$991,500,000	$1,200
Quebec	646,600	$542,100,000	$840
New Brunswick	37,600	$28,800,000	$770
Nova Scotia	56,000	$39,500,000	$710
Prince Edward Island	7,000	$3,600,000	$520
Newfoundland and Labrador	34,300	$37,900,000	$1,110
Northwest Territories/Nunavut/YukonTable 7 Footnote b	300	$300,000	$910
National	2,076,200	$2,126,200,000	$1,020
Table 7 Footnote a Note that figures are rounded. Table 7 Return to footnote a referrer Table 7 Footnote b For confidentiality purposes, due to lower numbers, the Northwest Territories, Nunavut and Yukon data have been combined. Table 7 Return to footnote b referrer

Claims processing

When CDCP members seek oral health care, providers submit claims to Sun Life to receive payment for services.

Sun Life processed 95% of claims requests within five days.

Most of the claims were on behalf of CDCP members age 65 and older, who made up the majority of CDCP members for benefit period 2024-2025 and could use their coverage earlier to access services.

Residents in Ontario, Quebec and British Columbia had the highest number of paid services (Table 8).

Table 8: Total number of paid services provided to CDCP members, by province and territory in benefit period 2024-2025^{Footnote 12}

Province or territory	Number of paid services (claim lines)Table 8 Footnote a
British Columbia	2,163,000
Alberta	726,000
Saskatchewan	223,000
Manitoba	371,000
Ontario	6,710,000
Quebec	3,534,000
New Brunswick	209,000
Nova Scotia	337,000
Prince Edward Island	38,000
Newfoundland and Labrador	231,000
Northwest Territories/Nunavut/YukonTable 8 Footnote b	2,000
Total	14,542,000
Table 8 Footnote a Note that figures are rounded. Individual rounded values may not sum to the total due to rounding. Table 8 Return to footnote a referrer Table 8 Footnote b For confidentiality purposes, due to lower numbers, the Northwest Territories, Nunavut and Yukon data have been combined. Table 8 Return to footnote b referrer

In benefit period 2024-2025, expenditures on restorative services (for example, fillings and crowns) were the highest at $782.9 million (Table 9). This was followed by:

• prosthodontic services (for example, dentures)
• diagnostic services (for example, exams and x-rays)
• preventive services (for example, fluoride, polishing and sealants)
• oral surgery services (for example, removal of teeth and roots and surgical incision)

Expenditure total represents the total net claims paid by Sun Life.

Table 9: Top five dental benefit categories, by expenditure ($ millions) in benefit period 2024-2025

Dental benefit category	Total expenditureTable 9 Footnote a
Restorative services	$782.9
Prosthodontic services	$514.5
Diagnostic services	$303.1
Preventive services	$220.4
Oral surgery services	$161.3
Table 9 Footnote a Note that figures are rounded. Table 9 Return to footnote a referrer

People age 65 and older made up the largest share of CDCP members who used their coverage in benefit period 2024-2025 (Table 10). Nearly 90% of people who used the plan were in this age group, and they also accounted for over 90% of total spending.

Table 10: Distribution of CDCP members who used their coverage, total benefit expenditures, and total paid services (%), by age group in benefit period 2024-2025

Age group	% of CDCP members who received at least one service	% of total benefit expenditures	% of total paid services (claim lines)
Under 18	10.5%	6.5%	9.4%
18 to 64 (DTC certificate only)	2.4%	2.3%	2.4%
65 and older	87.1%	91.2%	88.2%
Total	100%	100%	100%

To support equitable access for all eligible Canadian residents the CDCP allowed providers to submit claims on paper beginning in November 2024. This made it easier for some clinics, including small and rural practices, to participate.

At the same time, the plan introduced a preauthorization process for certain higher‑cost or complex treatments. While most CDCP‑covered services don’t need preauthorization, it’s needed for some treatments, such as crowns, initial placement of partial dentures, or additional units of scaling. This helps ensure that members with more complex needs can access appropriate services that meet the plan’s clinical criteria.

On average, Sun Life processed 82% of estimates within seven days of being submitted. This included more than 1.1 million preauthorization requests.

While most requests were processed within established timelines, processing times may have varied depending on completeness and complexity of submissions. There were some delays due to incomplete submissions and postal disruptions during the Canada Post strike in late 2024.

Health Canada worked to support submissions and made significant improvements in processing times to address provider feedback. For instance, Health Canada introduced a new preauthorization resources webpage to offer guidance as well as other educational tools to providers, and collaborated with Sun Life to streamline review processes.

Overall, the CDCP approved 51% of complete preauthorization requests.

Health Canada remains committed to continuous improvement so CDCP members can receive timely care and preauthorization requests can be processed efficiently.

Oral health provider participation

Oral health providers are essential to the CDCP. They provide care to CDCP members and submit claims to Sun Life. Their participation has helped millions of CDCP members receive care in the first year of the plan.

Oral health providers, including dentists, dental specialists, independent dental hygienists and denturists, began formally enrolling to provide services to CDCP members in March 2024. Following initial feedback from providers, Health Canada adapted the plan to allow providers to engage on a claim-by-claim basis as of July 2024.

As of June 30, 2025, 25,690 oral health providers were participating in the CDCP. Of eligible providers in Canada, 90% were actively participating, submitting a claim within the last three months of the benefit period.^{Footnote 13}

Survey findings on oral health practice capacity from Statistics Canada’s Survey of Oral Health Care Providers can, in part, explain the high participation rates. In 2023, 96% of oral health practices in Canada were accepting new patients, despite high human resource and operational pressures. More than half of practices also reported having average wait times of one week to less than one month for both existing and new patients before CDCP members could begin accessing services. This indicated that many oral health providers in Canada had capacity to accept CDCP members as new patients.

When looking at participation by province and territory (Table 11), Ontario and Quebec had the largest number of providers participating in the plan. They accounted for almost two-thirds (64%) of providers. These were also the provinces with the highest estimated eligible and enrolled CDCP members.

Note that some oral health providers may have provided care in more than one province or territory. For this reason, combined totals by province and territory may exceed the total overall number of participating providers.

Providers that can submit claims to the CDCP can be dentists, dental specialists, denturists, or independent dental hygienists. Dental specialists include:

• endodontists
• periodontists
• orthodontists
• prosthodontists
• oral pathologists
• pediatric dentists
• oral medicine specialists
• dental anesthesiologists
• oral and maxillofacial surgeons
• oral and maxillofacial radiologists

Table 11: Total number of participating oral health providers, by province or territory and specialty in benefit period 2024-2025^{Table 11 Footnote a}

Province or territory	Dentists and dental specialists	Denturists	Independent dental hygienists
British Columbia	3,490	230	130
Alberta	2,590	280	170
Saskatchewan	510	60	Less than 10
Manitoba	720	40	Less than 10
Ontario	9,840	570	660
Quebec	4,440	760	110
New Brunswick	320	30	30
Nova Scotia	530	30	20
Prince Edward Island	70	Less than 10	Less than 10
Newfoundland and Labrador	230	20	20
Northwest Territories/Nunavut/YukonTable 11 Footnote b	50	Less than 10	Less than 10
TotalTable 11 Footnote c	22,540	2,000	1,160
Table 11 Footnote a Note that figures are rounded. Table 11 Return to footnote a referrer Table 11 Footnote b For confidentiality purposes, due to lower numbers, the Northwest Territories, Nunavut and Yukon data have been combined. Table 11 Return to footnote b referrer Table 11 Footnote c Some oral health providers may provide care in more than one province or territory. For this reason, combined totals by province and territory may exceed the stated total overall number of participating providers. Table 11 Return to footnote c referrer

Most participating providers offered care in urban areas (95%), while approximately 9% also offered care in rural areas of Canada.^{Footnote 14} As some providers offer care in both rural and urban settings, rural and urban figures exceed 100%.

Table 12: Total number of participating oral health providers, by rural and urban in benefit period 2024-2025

Rural and urban	Participating providersTable 12 Footnote a
Rural	2,340
Urban	24,390
TotalTable 12 Footnote b	25,690
Table 12 Footnote a Note that figures are rounded. Table 12 Return to footnote a referrer Table 12 Footnote b As some providers offer care in both rural and urban settings, the total in the table reflects the total unique providers. Table 12 Return to footnote b referrer

Health Canada and Sun Life continue to make efforts to enhance providers’ experience with the plan. The CDCP will continue to use feedback collected from providers and their associations to improve CDCP delivery.

Conclusion

In its first year, the CDCP helped reduce financial barriers to oral health care, enabling more than 2 million members to access needed services through the plan’s coverage. This was possible through strong collaboration with delivery partners and providers. Health Canada remains committed to continuous improvement. We will use provider and plan member feedback to enhance delivery, improve experiences, uphold eligibility requirements and ensure responsible stewardship of public funds as the plan evolves.

Appendices

Appendix A: CDCP key milestones in benefit period 2024-2025

June 2023:

• Dental Care Measures Act comes into force, requiring employers and pension plan administrators to report on tax forms (T4 and T4A) whether their employees, former employees or pensioners have access to dental insurance

December 2023:

• CDCP formally launches and eligible people age 87 and older can apply for the plan

January 2024 to April 2024:

• Phased rollout of the CDCP continues and eligible people age 70 and older can apply for the plan
• Oral health provider participation in the CDCP launches in March 2024 through Sun Life’s website

May 2024:

• Enrolled CDCP members can begin using their coverage to access oral health care services under the CDCP
• Eligible people age 65 and older can apply for the plan
• Sun Life begins processing electronic claims

June 2024:

• Online applications open for children under 18 years old and adults with a valid Disability Tax Credit certificate
• Interim Canada Dental Benefit ends (June 30, 2024)

July 2024:

• Oral health providers can begin participating on a claim-by-claim basis

November 2024:

• CDCP services requiring preauthorization and paper claims submissions become available

March 2025:

• CDCP members can renew their coverage in the plan

May 2025:

• Adults age 18 to 64 can apply for the next CDCP benefit period

June 2025:

• New benefit period begins for those who have renewed their coverage or are newly enrolled in the CDCP

Appendix B: Data on oral health care access and oral health status

Health Canada is collecting and analyzing data from various sources to understand how the CDCP is impacting eligible Canadian residents’ access to oral health care and overall oral health. This includes:

• plan administrative data
• member and provider feedback
• results from population surveys

Population surveys provided data on oral health care access and outcomes before the launch of the plan. Budget 2023 allocated $23.1 million over two years (2023-2024 to 2024-2025) to Statistics Canada to address known data gaps. During this time, Health Canada collaborated with Statistics Canada to develop the Canadian Oral Health Survey (COHS) and the Survey of Oral Health Care Providers (SOHCP). These surveys collected data on oral health and access to dental care in Canada and helped inform the rollout of the CDCP.

Key oral health data and research articles from Statistics Canada’s Oral Health Statistics Program and recent surveys are the following:

Articles and reports

• Health Reports (April 2024): Assessing the role of dental insurance in oral health care disparities in Canadian adults
• Health Reports (April 2024): Factors associated with the use of oral health care services among Canadian children and youth
• Health Reports (June 2024): Factors associated with the use of oral health care services among seniors in Canada
• The Daily (August 2024): Dental visits returning to levels seen before the COVID-19 pandemic among Canadians in the provinces, 2023-2024
• The Daily (October 2024): Self-reported oral health problems in the Canadian population living in the provinces, November 2023 to March 2024
• StatCan Plus (January 2025): One in four Canadians age 12 and older avoided oral health care services because of cost
• Insights on Canadian Society (February 2025): Cost-related avoidance of oral health services
• The Daily (March 2025): Survey of Oral Health Care Providers
• Health Reports (August 2025): Characteristics of cost-related avoidance of oral health services among people in Canada eligible for the Canadian Dental Care Plan

Dashboards and tables

• 71-607-X (Dashboard): Selected indicators of oral health in Canada
• Table: 13-10-0903-01 (COHS): Selected indicators of dental visits, by age group and gender
• Table: 13-10-0920-01 (COHS): Selected indicators of dental insurance coverage, by age group and gender
• Table: 13-10-0921-01 (COHS): Selected indicators of self-perceived oral health status, by age group and gender
• Table: 13-10-0908-01 (SOHCP): Oral health care providers, job vacancies, jobs occupied, and job vacancy rate by provider type

Appendix C: Data notes