DENTISTS have welcomed the National Cabinet's decision to allow a range of dental treatments to recommence from next week.
"It's great news because it means dentists can open their doors again and attend to a broader range of patient needs and not just emergencies," said Australian Dental Association president Dr Carmelo Bonanno.
"Dentists have the highest level of infection control standards which is what makes it viable for them to work under the Level 2 restrictions."
While the move to Level 2 restrictions still has limitations, additional treatments will be possible including examinations, fillings and hand scaling.
"People concerned about any oral health issue can call their dentist and they will make an assessment of possible treatment under the eased restrictions," added Dr Bonanno.
The closure of thousands of practices due to the need to control the spread of the virus, has severely impacted dental services with patients facing long delays for restorative and preventative treatment.
Some dental practices reported facing permanent closure as well as staff redundancies.
"We look forward to the complete return of all dental services further down the track," said Dr Bonanno.