NCA calls for price display by all doctors and dentists
- Survey shows 68% of dentists, 50% of doctors do not display prices
- Large differences in prices charged - locally and nationally
12 May 2010
The CEO of the National Consumer Agency (NCA), Ann Fitzgerald, today called for greater transparency of doctor and dentist charges in Ireland following publication of a new NCA survey which shows that almost seven out of 10 dentists and half of doctors do not display prices.
The key findings of the study include:
- 32% of dentists and 50% of doctors surveyed displayed a schedule of fees on their premises
- There is significant regional variation in propensity to display price:
- 80% of doctors surveyed in Tallaght/Walkinstown displayed a schedule of charges versus 22% of medical practices visited in Cork
- 54% of dentists surveyed in the Waterford area displayed prices versus 9% in Cork
- Prices charged by both doctors and dentists vary considerably across different areas of the country. In addition, prices within local areas also display considerable disparity
The NCA survey of general practice doctors and dentists covered 11 urban locations across Ireland and was conducted between 18 and 26 March 2010.
NCA staff visited a total of 251 doctors' and dentists' premises to ascertain the proportion of doctors and dentists who display a schedule of prices and to document the levels of fees charged for a small but routinely accessed range of services.
Price display
- The study identifies that 32% of dentists and 50% of doctors display a schedule of fees on their premises
- 80% of doctors surveyed in the Tallaght/Walkinstown area of Dublin City displayed prices compared with 22% in Cork City
- Levels of price display were found to be lower amongst dental surgeries. 54% of dentists surveyed in Waterford City display their prices. The comparable statistic for Cork City is 9%
Ann Fitzgerald said: "We need to have greater transparency in what doctors and dentists are charging consumers.
"Any service provider to the public should be required to display prices for routine services and there is no reason why doctors and dentists should be exempt.
"These are necessary services that consumers routinely require. Our survey shows a proportion of doctors and dentists are already displaying prices, so there is no good reason why all such practitioners cannot do so.
"The NCA wants to work with the regulatory and representative bodies for these professions in order to secure a better deal for consumers.
"Today, we have written to them inviting them to submit a Code of Practice in this area. We have also written to the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Innovation to secure his support for measures to require transparent price display. We will also be examining pricing practices amongst other professional service providers over the coming period."
Pricing information
The NCA survey also collated price information for doctors' and dentists' services.
For doctors, there was some variation at both local and national level:
- Prices recorded nationally ranged from €35 in Tralee/Killarney to €70 in Ballsbridge/Sandymount
- The overall/national average price for a routine GP consultation was €51. The lowest average price in individual areas (€46) was recorded in both the Ennis/Gort/Loughrea and Tralee/Killarney areas. And the highest average price (€59) was recorded in the Ballsbridge/Sandymount area of Dublin
- Ballsbridge/Sandymount in Dublin recorded the largest difference (€25) between the cheapest and dearest price in an individual location. In contrast Cork recorded the smallest difference between cheapest and dearest price at €5
For dentists, the variations were more noticeable:
- The range of price for a routine examination is significant, from free (seven dentists in six locations) to €86 (Dublin City South)
- The overall/national average price recorded for a routine examination by a dentist was €44
- Nationally, the highest average price (for those that did charge a fee) for a routine examination (€52) was recorded in Dublin City South and Galway City. And overall, the lowest average price for a routine examination was found in Ennis/Gort/Loughrea area (€36)
- The overall/national average price surveyed for a scale and polish was €61. The minimum overall price recorded for this service was €25
- The highest price recorded was €90
- Nationally the average price recorded for a combined examination and scale and polish was €76
- The overall/national average price for a simple extraction was €82, the range of prices recorded varied from €40 to €150
Ann Fitzgerald added: "We recognise that many consumers do not choose their GP or dentist on cost alone and take factors like quality of treatment, relationship and convenience into account.
"However, access to information on cost is vitally important in making such decisions and we are committed to providing transparency to consumers so that they can weigh all factors when considering where to go for their dental or GP treatment.
"This is what empowering consumers is all about and we are calling on doctors and dentists to do their bit to deliver a fair deal to their patients."
Full details of the survey, including the survey report and all tables of survey results data, are available in the Research Zone of NCA.ie