BACOLOD City – The Sangguniang Panlungsod (SP) approved on first reading the proposed ordinance seeking to provide affordable dentures and prosthodontics services to indigent residents in this city.
The measure, known as the “Barato nga Pustiso” Program Ordinance, aims to improve oral health and overall quality of life among marginalized Bacolodnons through access to free or low-cost dental prosthetics.
Authored by Councilor Celia Flor, the ordinance underscores the importance of restoring self-confidence, enabling proper nutrition, improving speech, and enhancing employability and social participation through oral rehabilitation.
Citing data from the 2018 National Survey on Oral Health by the Department of Health (DOH) and the World Health Organization (WHO), Flor said that approximately 78 percent of Filipinos suffer from dental caries, while over 90 percent of elderly Filipinos are partially or fully edentulous — underscoring the urgent need for accessible dental care.
Under the proposed program, the Dental Division of the City Health Office (CHO) will provide initial dental check-ups and fabricate dental prostheses, or “false teeth,” for qualified beneficiaries suffering from partial or complete tooth loss.
While beneficiaries will be responsible for purchasing the required materials, the fabrication of the dentures will be done by the CHO dental technician, ensuring that the cost remains affordable for low-income residents.
The ordinance also proposes a ‘self-liquidating system’, where fees collected for the fabrication process can be used to supplement the salaries and benefits of the CHO’s dental laboratory technician.
If approved, the Dental Division will serve as the lead implementing agency, managing both the clinical assessments and the technical production of prosthetic devices.
The measure will undergo further deliberations in the coming weeks as it proceeds to second and third readings in the SP./PN
