Mary Harney (Dublin Mid West, Progressive Democrats)

The greatest guarantor of keeping the cost of health insurance down is competition. One does not keep the cost of health insurance down by restricting the capacity of private beds. If one does that, one is insuring people who cannot get services. That does not make sense. In all markets competition drives innovation and keeps prices down. That is why I welcome the entry to the Irish market of Quinn Direct. As there is a question about insurance, I will deal with that matter then. The changes we must make here to make this market more competitive will guarantee that all consumers with private health insurance get better value for money.

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