As of Thursday, eligible Canadians can apply for funding for the first federal dental care program.
The Canada Dental Benefit will be offered to children 12 and under in families that do not have private dental insurance, and have an annual income of less than $90,000.
Depending on income and circumstances, the program could see parents claim $260 to $650 per child, per year tax free.
"It's a great benefit and the dentists are very excited about it because it gives us the ability to see patients," says Lisa Bentley, president of the Ontario Dental Association.
"There's not any limitations on what services we can provide for patients."
At Dentistry at Arnprior, owner and dentist Neeraj Bansal says just five to seven per cent of his clients are children 12 and under.
"Families will come and say we just don't have the money to afford it," Bansal tells CTV News Ottawa. "We see children with so many cavities."
It is recommended you visit the dentist twice a year. Bansal says this benefit should cover the full cost of a routine appointment.
"It would cover a good cleaning for a year, fluoride application, and maybe a couple of fillings."
"There are 30 per cent of Ontarians that don't have access to dental coverage," says Bentley. "And these are the people that we hope this plan will focus on and help."
Canadians can apply for the benefit online through the Canada Revenue Agency's "My Account" portal or through their Service Canada account. The CRA has also set up a phone line to receive dental applications. More details can be found here.
The federal government says the new national benefit is expected to help half a million Canadian children receive dental care.
"There's a lot of changes that happen from three years to 12 years," says Bansal, on the importance of regular dentist visits. "There are a lot of baby teeth they will loose and new teeth are coming in."
The Canada Dental Benefit is seen as unexpected relief by patients and practitioners, as every day living costs soar, leaving expenses like dental appointments as unaffordable luxuries.
"We actually kind of never anticipated that this was going to happen," added Bansal.
Convicted murderer Daniel Jolivet, in prison for the past 30 years, has maintained his innocence since the day he was arrested. W5 reviews the evidence he painstakingly assembled while behind bars. W5's documentary 'Buried Evidence' airs Saturday at 7 p.m. on CTV.
Dozens of Russian and Ukrainian prisoners of war have returned home following a prisoner swap, officials on both sides said Saturday.
Marit Stiles is expected to be confirmed as the new leader of the Ontario NDP today.
The massive white orb drifting across U.S. airspace has triggered a diplomatic maelstrom and is blowing up on social media. A look at what's known about the balloon crossing the U.S. and what isn't.
In the field of cancer treatment, nothing is more important than diagnosing and treating the problem as quickly as possible — but according to new survey data, about one in four Canadian cancer patients report that they are still experiencing cancelled or postponed appointments.
The oldest preserved vertebrate brain has been found in a 319-million-year-old fossilized fish skull that was removed from an English coal mine over a century ago.
In a terrible way, the death of Tyre Nichols brings vindication to members of the Black community in Memphis who live in terror of police.
A train derailment and resulting large fire prompted an evacuation order and a declaration of a state of emergency in an Ohio village near the Pennsylvania state line on Friday night, covering the area in billows of smoke lit orange by the flames below.
The suspected Chinese surveillance balloon that was found floating over sensitive military sites in the western United States had been tracked by Canada's government since last weekend as it passed through Canadian airspace, sources tell CTV News.
With all of the Maritimes still under extreme cold warnings Saturday morning, more than 34,000 households and businesses are without power, as of 11 a.m.
A woman has died after a Friday fire at a home in Nova Scotia’s Annapolis County.
Nova Scotia drivers who use diesel fuel will see a significant drop at the pumps on Saturday.
Marit Stiles is expected to be confirmed as the new leader of the Ontario NDP today.
After being charged with speeding by a city-operated photo radar device, a Toronto family was able to successfully fight the charge in court largely due to one small detail.
Torontonians appear to be returning downtown in greater numbers but the pace of the city’s economic recovery still lags behind many other North American cities, a new study suggests.
Residents from Quebec to Newfoundland and Labrador are waking up this morning to more extreme cold weather. Emergency officials warned people to seek shelter and monitor for frostbite if they had to be outside overnight, as the temperature across much of Eastern Canada was expected to feel like -40 C to -50 C with the wind chill.
The opening of the Quebec Winter Carnival sites has been postponed again, this time to 2 p.m. on Saturday, due to the extreme cold.
A Quebec university study found that nearly three years of the pandemic have had an effect on the travel habits of Quebecers: even with the partial or complete lifting of restrictions, they increasingly prefer to travel at home. The most recent Cahier des tendances published by the Transat Chair in Tourism at the École des sciences de la gestion de l'UQAM revealed that inflation and health measures hurt many Quebecers.
An investigation that lasted almost two years has resulted in moose hunting violation convictions for six people and a lodge in Red Lake in northwestern Ontario.
Convicted murderer Daniel Jolivet, in prison for the past 30 years, has maintained his innocence since the day he was arrested. W5 reviews the evidence he painstakingly assembled while behind bars. W5's documentary 'Buried Evidence' airs Saturday at 7 p.m. on CTV.
With the entire northeast in a deep freeze, fire services in Sault Ste. Marie is urging caution when dealing with frozen pipes.
In the field of cancer treatment, nothing is more important than diagnosing and treating the problem as quickly as possible — but according to new survey data, about one in four Canadian cancer patients report that they are still experiencing cancelled or postponed appointments.
The public is being asked to avoid the area of Sixth Avenue in Woodstock, Ont. on Friday afternoon due to an “active police investigation” following a grim discovery made by police.
Winnipeg police released a new image of a 31-year-old woman who has been missing since early last year on Friday in the hope it may generate new information on her whereabouts.
A fire destroyed a popular paint and hobby shop in Winkler Thursday afternoon with black smoke prompting Winkler police to close off a stretch of Highway 32 for more than an hour.
Manitoba has expanded the types of identification acceptable for use to purchase liquor, cannabis and lottery tickets in the province.
Police say they’ve arrested three people and one person was taken to hospital following an armed robbery at Conestoga Mall on Thursday.
Ontario Provincial Police are once again reminding drivers to clear the snow and ice off of their vehicles before they head out onto the road.
Waterloo regional police issued a robbery warning Thursday evening after they said two convenience stores and a restaurant in Kitchener were robbed within a 30 minute span.
Alberta's high court is being asked to overturn a review board decision relating to the stabbing deaths of five young people at a Calgary house party on the grounds the former provincial justice minister interfered.
The Lethbridge Hurricanes kept Connor Bedard off the scoresheet for the first time in 36 games, but it wasn't enough, as the 'Canes lost 3-2 to the Regina Pats Friday night.
Police are investigating a series of tire slashing incidents in northeast Calgary.
BHP is moving forward with its plans to build the world's largest potash mine.
After months of driving around the city with an advertisement for a kidney donor on her bright red car, Debbie Onishenko will soon be able to rip off the decals as her search has ended.
The community of Dundurn is rallying behind a firefighter who lost her home in a fire.
An Edmonton man who received a ticket from the city under the phase 2 residential parking ban earlier this week says his street has finally been plowed — five days after his vehicle was ticketed.
Marc, Seth and Zacary James are the Melisizwe Brothers, and they performed at Jasper Place High School on Friday as part of Edmonton Public School Black History Month celebrations.
Technology in Alberta that is expected to allow doctors to more accurately and effectively treat cancerous tumours with radiation enters clinical trials next week.
A man who took part in four traffic-stopping protests in Metro Vancouver in an effort to save old-growth forests has been given a conditional sentence and six months' probation by a provincial court judge.
Some legal advocates are questioning the effectiveness of police-worn body cameras as the RCMP plans to roll out the technology across the country.
The mayors of Port Coquitlam and Port Moody want Nav Canada — the organization that creates flight paths for airports across the country — to pause its plans for a new YVR arrivals route that will direct many large airplanes over their communities.
Saskatchewan is reacting to the removal of controversial amendment G4 to Bill C-21 by the federal Liberals, which banned certain semi-automatic rifles and shotguns.
Residents in Regina's North Central community are voicing safety concerns after a water main break resulted in icy sidewalk and road conditions.
A local non-profit is hoping a new office space can help reconnect Indigenous youth to their culture.
