Few broken election promises have shattered more hopes than the provincial government’s failure to provide dental care for the working poor. The government budgeted $135 million in 2008 for a three-year plan serving low-income Ontarians without access to other dental coverage. But in the teeth of a recession and a $21 billion provincial deficit, that funding is going toward emergency dental care for children. Left unmet are the needs of poor adults and programs to prevent dental problems before they degenerate into costly emergencies.

No one can deny that Ontario confronts deep financial challenges. Some sacrifice is necessary. But it makes no practical sense to abandon dental care for those who need it most.

This isn’t a matter of cosmetic frills; it’s a major social and health-care issue. Rotten and missing teeth, due to inadequate dentistry, don’t just result from poverty, they also cause it by making it difficult to land a good job. Dental problems have been found among the top 10 reasons for hospital emergency visits and can lead to heart disease, overall poor health and abscesses that if left untreated could cause blindness and even death.

A Star investigation published last week found that out-of-reach costs and unfamiliarity with the Canadian dental system are driving many poor Ontarians, especially recent immigrants, to bogus “dentists” offering dangerously substandard care.

In light of this, it isn’t enough to look at the need and say — as Ontario Health Minister Deb Matthews did last week — that the province just can’t afford it. “There are many ways we would love to be able to spend our money,” said Matthews. No doubt, but providing proper dental care for hundreds of thousands of desperate Ontarians should be a top priority. And while better emergency tooth care for poor children is a step forward, stopping there is a half-measure on a promise that warrants delivery in full.