Insurers against chamber

Dispute over fillings: Patients are the victims

Patients are waiting for an agreement so that they don't have to pay for fillings.

(Bild: Birbaumer Christof/Christof Birbaumer)

There is still no agreement between the health insurance companies and the Dental Association regarding free fillings. Amalgam may no longer be used since the beginning of the year.

Anyone who has a hole in a molar currently has to worry even more than usual when visiting the dentist. This is because there are no longer any free fillings for these teeth. Until the end of 2024, the Austrian Health Insurance Fund (ÖGK) and social insurance companies were still relying on dental fillings made from amalgam, but this was banned by the EU on January 1, 2025.

Those responsible have been aware of this since the end of July 2024, but instead of finding a new solution, the Austrian Dental Association (ÖZAK) and the ÖGK prefer to criticize each other. As is so often the case, patients fall by the wayside, which is why there have been no free fillings for molars since the beginning of the year.

Dispute over filling material
And what do the negotiators disagree on? Composite, i.e. the so-called "white" filling, is used for the front teeth - this is paid for by the insurance companies. For molars, ÖGK uses Alkasit, while ÖZAK uses glass ionomer cement (GIZ), which is also used in some ÖGK dental health centers. 

Incidentally, an agreement has already been reached with the Insurance Institution for Public Employees, Railways and Mining - the traditionally financially strong BVAEB pays for GIZ fillings anyway.

Politicians have also recognized the problem. "At no time was it about the well-being of patients," criticizes Ronny Rull (VP) and TK boss Köfer demands: "A replacement financed by the health insurance system is needed immediately." Until then, some dentists are administering GIZ fillings at their own risk and hoping for an agreement by the end of the quarter.