Ontario Oral Health Alliance (OOHA)

If you're struggling with access to dental care and would like to know more about any low cost dental care options for adults and seniors that may be available in your community OR would like to help improve access to dental care in your community contact the OOHA chairperson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. more information.

The Ontario Oral Health Alliance (OOHA) got started in January 2007 by a group of community dental coalitions who wanted to show policy makers that improving access to dental care was a goal shared by many people across Ontario. OOHA is made up of representatives from a number of organizations and members of the public from:

Bramalea, Toronto, Kingston, Ottawa, Thunder Bay, Durham, Halton, the Counties of Leeds Grenville, Lanark, Hastings, Prince Edward, Peterborough, Northumberland, Lennox, Addington and Haliburton.

OOHA's vision is:  a system that allows for equitable dental care for all Ontarians 

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NEW! Video -The Gap in Healthcare in Ontario

This video introduces the problem of access to oral health care in our province in less than 4 minutes. Use this short but effective Whiteboard video as an advocacy tool to help influence community partners and local policy makers to take action to improve access to oral health care in Ontario. https://youtu.be/SeuDyFvwuvU 

If you need to download a copy of the video follow this link.  You just need to click on the 'Download' button on the top left corner of the screen when the video begins to play, the file size is 250MB.

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Lack of Access to Dental Care 

Did you know that every 9 minutes someone goes to an Emergency Room in Ontario because of dental pain & every 3 minutes someone goes to a doctor’s office in Ontario because of dental problems??

Find out more about the lack of access to dental care in Ontario with this updated information sheet with dental related emergency room and doctor visit statistics. 

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2017 Budget Submission

Jacquie Maund from the Association of Ontario Health Centres participated in Ontario’s Pre-Budget consultations in Toronto and presented this 2017 Budget Submission from the Ontario Oral Health Alliance to the Standing Committee on Finance & Economic Affairs

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Patients First Proposal

On December 17, 2015 the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long Term Care released a Discussion paper entitled: “Patients First – A proposal to strengthen patient-centred health care in Ontario”.  

OOHA has responded to the Ontario Minister of Health’s call for input on this proposal that outlines a plan intended to put patients first to address structural issues that create inequities.

Click here to read OOHA's response...

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FACT SHEET on Oral Health and Seniors

What is the Problem? 

Medicare pays to treat infection in every other part of the body except for the mouth. 

Many people experience barriers accessing primary oral health care, including cost, transportation, fear of seeing a dentist, and the belief that oral health is not that important. 

Since it is not covered by Medicare and is very expensive.......

Click here to learn more...

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Oral Health Intervention Tool

Help local residents access publicly funded dental services and/or the most cost effective dental services in your community. Simply modify this template by inserting your own community dental health service information and distribute it to community partners and health care providers. You do not have to be part of a dental coalition to use this tool. It can be adapted for any community.

Click here to download

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Ontario Oral Health Alliance Forum 2015

Needed: A Tommy Douglas for dental care!!  

It's time to ensure people in need can access oral health care.

Medicare doesn't cover our teeth and gums. About 2.3 million people in Ontario don't see a dentist because they can't afford it. Their health and wellbeing suffers as a result. This costs us all as people in dental pain turn to hospital emergency rooms and lose work days. How can our health system ensure that people in need have access to the oral health care they require to be healthy? Two recent reports tackled this issue. Hear from a panel of health and community spokespeople who will share their knowledge and ideas.  Learn more...