Children's dental health in the Cardiff area is being severely compromised as thousands are not able to see an NHS dentist, it has been claimed.
According to a Freedom of Information request by the Welsh Liberal Democrats, 7,443 children in Cardiff and Vale of Glamorgan are waiting for a dentist with the NHS. With the exception of Cardiff and Powys, no other health boards in Wales have collected data on the number of children waiting to be assigned an NHS dentist.
According to the Lib Dems, the figures show that Wales is operating on a "two-tier system of dentistry", where those "well off" can afford to go private and those who cannot are left "suffering in pain". The Welsh Government disputes this.
