Dentists say the $22 million being spent on giving young people general anaesthetics for largely preventable conditions could go a long way towards stopping them needing surgery in the first place.
Nearly 9,000 children and teens had dental work in hospital operating theatres last year, many of them for preventable conditions.
Specialist paediatric dentist Katie Ayers told Rowan Quinn that if there was a little more money spent earlier, it would create savings for the health system down the line.