Mr. Liam Woods:

The Deputy is right that there is a fundamental difference. For three months last year, the HSE took on the full capacity of the private system and paid at cost for that. The estimate for the full cost is about €300 million, but I would need to confirm that number. This time the arrangement is that we are taking on upfront 30% capacity and therefore it is not a cost-based arrangement. We are paying commercial rates. The key focus for us now is to move patients to the private hospitals from public hospitals to alleviate the pressure the Deputy mentioned in his first question. It is a key safety valve for us.

The other learning from the last time was that private hospitals are already undertaking significant urgent elective activity. It is not necessary or helpful to displace that activity. It is important that continues or it would potentially come into the public hospital system. We are working with the private hospitals right now to optimise the use of that 30% capacity. If we are at the ceiling of demand, we will continue to do that depending on certain trigger criteria which are set out and which are fundamentally based on the incidence of virus in the community and some hospital factors. There is a difference. The difference is that we have taken less capacity, but the private hospitals continue to do significant private work that is of benefit.