Portugal health regulator reports one-third of municipalities lack oral health clinics

The Entidade Reguladora da Saúde (ERS) reports that 98 of Portugal's 278 mainland municipalities had no operational oral health clinic in primary‑care settings at the end of last year, meaning roughly one‑third of areas lack access.

The study of the National Health Service’s oral‑health programme (PNPSO) highlights significant geographic asymmetries in the distribution of dental offices and professionals. Private dentist participation remained stable at 5,886 in 2025, but regional imbalances persist, with 3,147 dentists in the North versus only 131 in Alentejo. The dentist‑to‑population ratio is lowest in Lisbon and Vale do Tejo (2.6 per 10,000) and highest in the North (8.4 per 10,000).

Utilisation of dental vouchers fell from a 74 % uptake in 2016 to 64 % in 2025. Elderly patients show the highest usage but also the greatest decline, while early‑cancer‑intervention patients increased from 47 % to 67 % over the same period. About 91 % of vouchers are redeemed in private practices. In 2025, 767,746 vouchers were issued, 490,261 of them for children and youths under 18. Visits to oral‑health clinics rose from fewer than 2,000 in 2016 to over 50,000 in 2025, and more than 120,000 treatments were performed between 2016 and 2025. The regulator notes progress but stresses ongoing territorial inequities and the need for continued monitoring.