The Canadian Dental Care Plan (CDCP) is scheduled to start providing coverage next month - but it is unclear whether enough dentists will register to provide care for the 1.6 million seniors who have already enrolled.

The Canadian Ministry of Health will not provide the media with a number showing how many oral healthcare providers have registered with the CDCP since applications opened on March 11. The ministry will only say that “thousands” have logged in.

According to their national associations, there are nearly 26,500 dentists, 1,700 independent health specialists, and 2,400 practicing dentists in Canada - 30,500 in total.

Dr. Heather Kerr, president of the Canadian Dental Association, said: “I have heard that the registration process is slow. And I don’t think it is as high as we hope for this plan to succeed.”

The $13-billion Canadian Dental Care Plan, announced in December, will provide dental insurance for low- and middle-income Canadian residents if they do not have private coverage. The national program will eventually apply to a quarter of Canadians, but Ottawa is rolling out eligibility gradually, starting with seniors first.

Some eligible seniors for coverage are finding that their dentists are not participating.

Karen Trimingham, 82, who lives in Yarmouth, New South Wales, where she has visited the same dentist for 16 years, said: “I was upset. I was really angry.” “I didn’t think they would refuse me because I am a regular client.”

Trimingham said she does not want to drive for hours from her rural community to find a dentist in another city registered in the program.

She said: “I have to keep paying. I will go and do the minimum amount with the dentist I have.” “Instead of replacing that tooth I lost a few months ago, I will patch that gap.”