The case for affordable oral health care: the public voice.

Objectives Although we have scientific and policy discussions on the need for oral health care, rarely have populations been asked about their expectations regarding this important matter. Therefore, the public voice has been absent from these discussions. This study aims to quantify public support among working-age Australian adults regarding the essentiality of oral health care and assess whether oral health care affordability differs by sociodemographic characteristics. Study type Descriptive analysis of nationally representative data from Australia. Methods Using cross-sectional survey weights, we analysed data from wave 18 (2018) of the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia study. The analysis included 11,028 working-age Australians aged 20-54years. Results Almost all (96.4%) working-age Australian adults considered oral health care as essential; however, 6.5% do not get treatment due to lack of affordability. Higher proportions of specific disadvantaged groups, such as the unemployed, those with lower educational attainment, lower income, and participants with disability, reported not availing themselves of oral health care due to lack of affordability compared to less disadvantaged groups. Conclusion Overwhelmingly, working-age Australian adults considered oral health care to be essential. The vast majority reported getting oral health care when needed, indicating no major affordability concerns. However, the lack of affordable dental care was a barrier, particularly for the disadvantaged groups, preventing them from accessing oral health services. This highlights the need to provide equitable oral health care, ideally by implementing the principles of universal oral health coverage.