Belgian Health Minister Frank Vandenbroucke is working on new legal rules to clarify how emergency dental services are organised across the country.
At present, there is no clear overview of how many dentists take part in emergency on-call services in each province or municipality. While professional associations introduced their own guidelines in 2022 and some hospitals run emergency dental rotations, coverage remains uneven. In certain regions, no on-call dentists are available, while in others, patients report that calls go unanswered.
Federal oversight bodies, including the National Institute for Health and Disability Insurance (Riziv) and the supervisory commission, currently have no formal role in monitoring these services or overseeing how dentists are compensated for emergency duty.
In response to a written question from Vooruit MP Jan Bertels, Vandenbroucke said he is working with professional organisations to establish a clear legal framework. The proposal would formally define how emergency dental services are structured and give oversight bodies access to official duty rosters.
The reforms aim to ensure that patients can easily find reliable information on where to access emergency dental care outside normal working hours. At the same time, dentists would receive clearer guarantees about fair compensation for taking part in on-call services.
Bertels welcomed the initiative, calling it a positive step for both patients and practitioners. He said patients would benefit from transparent access to emergency care, while dentists would gain certainty about remuneration for providing an essential public service.