Argentina's PAMI dental care halted as dentists protest unpaid fees

Dentists serving retirees under Argentina's public health insurer PAMI have suspended routine dental services, maintaining only emergency care, to protest delayed payments and extremely low per‑capita reimbursements. Providers report receiving just 372 pesos per patient, insufficient to cover basic supplies such as anesthetic tubes that cost around 2,000 pesos each.

Complex procedures are even more underfunded; a prosthesis is reimbursed at roughly 137,000 pesos, while professional guidelines suggest a minimum of 600,000‑700,000 pesos. Although PAMI settled an outstanding debt for April, dentists say the amount does not reflect the real cost of imported materials and operating expenses. The dispute mirrors earlier strikes by primary‑care physicians over similar payment structures.

The suspension leaves thousands of senior affiliates without ongoing dental treatment, raising concerns about unfinished prosthetic work, untreated infections, and associated health risks such as cardiovascular complications.