The dean of the University of Otago School of Dentistry believes it could meet the Labour Party’s dentistry student targets.
Free dental care is already available to those under 18.
In order to implement the policy, it is proposing raising the dental care training cap by 50%.
Although dean of Dentistry Prof Paul Cooper was not in a position to comment on the policy from a political standpoint, he said the cap increase would be welcomed.
"The pressure on the dental health system is well documented, and we have previously indicated a willingness to the government to increase our cap to help with this.
"This would be a significant investment in the country’s dental health work force," Prof Cooper said.
Prof Cooper said the school presently had a cap of 60 domestic students, and the staged increase over two years to 90 students (15 extra domestic students a year) starting from 2025 would be "an achievable and sensible model of implementation".
Mr Hipkins said the free dental care policy would cost about $390 million over four years, reflecting the delay in implementing it fully until 2026, and limiting it to those under 30.
Mr Hipkins said New Zealand had some of the highest recorded rates of unmet need for adult dental care - overwhelmingly because of cost.
"In 2022 alone, 1.5 million Kiwis didn’t visit a dentist because it was just too expensive.
"Children and young people presently have access to free basic dental services but as soon as they turn 18, they face big bills and often drop out of the system."
