We know that oral health is an important part of our health and wellbeing. Access to dental care allows us to smile, talk, eat and enjoy the things that matter to us. It keeps us and our communities well. Yet oral health is treated differently to the rest of our health. Successive governments have excluded adult dental care from the public health system, forcing people to access it in the private sector, which means that nearly half of NZ adults can’t afford it.1 This has to change.
This year we have ramped up work on Dental for All, a campaign to make oral healthcare free for everyone, as part of a public health system which is well-resourced and consistent with Te Tiriti o Waitangi. Dental for All is about a future where everyone in Aotearoa can access the care they need to thrive.
This kaupapa is driven by the Dental for All coalition, which includes unions, community organisations, oral health workers and many others passionate about transforming the way we treat oral health in Aotearoa – alongside a growing movement of everyday people organising for Dental for All in their communities.
We kicked off 2025 with the release of a report in February, titled “I Didn’t Want to Smile”: Experiences of Oral Healthcare in Aotearoa New Zealand and the Case for Dental for All. This report contains ten stories from around the country about people’s experiences of dental care, highlighting how our current approach is causing pain, stress and stigma, and forces people to make impossible decisions about their healthcare. This followed the release of our first report in 2024, which found that the costs of adults not accessing dental care because they can’t afford it exceeds the costs of funding it in our public health system.
We had strong public and political engagement with this second report, through our launch event in Te Whanganui a Tara as well as wider media coverage. This was an important opportunity to highlight the stories of those who have been failed by the privatised model of oral healthcare.
Towards the middle of the year, we focused on building up public momentum around the call for Dental for All, starting with Flossin’ – a day party in Tāmaki Makaurau which we hosted in collaboration with local dentist & DJ, GoldTooth. We had an awesome day of good music, dancing, kai and conversations about Dental for All, with over 200 attendees coming to support. We also launched our campaign merch for people to purchase at the event (you’ll have another opportunity to order merch online in early 2026!).
From August to October we embarked on our biggest adventure yet: the Dental for All roadshow. The Dental for All team travelled all over the country, from Te Taitokerau down to Murihiku, holding community events in over 20 towns and cities. We connected with hundreds of people, worked with dozens of community members and local organisations to host events, and garnered significant national and local media coverage of our fight for free dental care.
Our free dental days gave us a glimpse of a better future, where we experienced passionate oral health workers offering whānau-centred care that upholds people’s dignity. We saw small towns pack out their community halls because they know first-hand how important this issue is, and they want to be part of the conversation. We met so many people who have been courageous in sharing their stories, advocating for themselves and their communities, and they are fired up and ready to take action.
Out of the roadshow, local organising groups are forming that are planning local actions to keep the pressure on this issue leading up to Election 2026. A wave of energy and people power has been created through the roadshow, and now we need to channel this towards political action to make Dental for All a reality.
Going into next year, we want politicians to hear loud and clear that it’s time for Dental for All. That communities value our public health system, want it to be better supported and expanded to include oral health, and believe it’s important that Te Tiriti o Waitangi is embedded in this system. We are working on further research to explore what this looks like at the policy level. This includes releasing two additional papers in 2026, one looking at what we can learn from oral health models overseas and another outlining policy options for Aotearoa. We are also ramping up our advocacy to ensure that Dental for All is on the political agenda leading up to Election 2026. And we are looking forward to working alongside local organisers to plan actions and mobilise their communities in support of Dental for All.
Keep in the loop by following Dental for All on Facebook and Instagram, and sign up to our mailing list to get involved. Our movement is stronger with you part of it!
Reference:
1. 43% of NZ adults reported unmet need for dental care due to cost in the 2024/25 NZ health survey.