Ms Laura Magahy:

I ask Mr. Sullivan to take the questions regarding the section 39 organisations and I will address the question on value for money. A robust process is in place once the service plan is agreed with the HSE, which is the major supplier of services to the State. That is an oversight process between the HSE and the Department of Health. The service plan lists what has to be done each year for the money the section 39 organisations receive.

The people in the health service work extremely hard. With regard to value for money, they have proven themselves adaptable and agile in response to something as immense as the impact of the coronavirus. A robust system is still in place for oversight. It will always be possible to get better value for money. Having the ability to look at things on a regional and population basis would assist in doing that because that is not as clear now. I say that because as people move between community services and hospital, their care journey is paid for by different parts of the system. Some parts might be paid through the GP, some through community services and some through hospital services. It is not always possible, therefore, to see what the total journey of care is for people who move between the settings. There are, however, very robust systems within the HSE. That is particularly the case regarding activity-based funding in the hospitals, but it is less robust in community settings at the moment. That is something the e-health programme is designed to address in more detail.