The federal government’s new Canada Dental Benefit took effect on December 1, 2022. This first phase applies to children under the age of 12.
Parents would apply for the coverage through their CRA account online, and they must not have private dental coverage for their children.
The Canada Dental Benefit will provide dental care to Canadian families with under $90,000 adjusted net income annually. By 2025, the federal government expects to extend the benefit to children under 18, senior citizens and Canadians with disabilities.
The Canada Dental Benefit provides payments up to $650 per child per year for families with adjusted net income under $90,000 per year and without dental coverage.
$650 would be provided for each eligible child if the family’s adjusted net income is under $70,000.
$390 would be provided for each eligible child if the family’s adjusted net income is between $70,000 and $79,999.
$260 would be provided for each eligible child if the family’s adjusted net income is between $80,000 and $89,999.
How will this impact your plan?
If you have an insured dental plan in place, children under 12 would still be covered by your benefits.
Existing coverage will not be impacted, so we do not anticipate reductions to insured dental premiums.
As a plan sponsor, how can you leverage this new dental coverage for children?
As details of the application process and what types of plans qualify as “private insurance” become clearer, we’ll be looking for ways that plan sponsors could potentially leverage this plan – including the use of Health Spending Accounts or Administrative Services Only (ASO) funding arrangements.