Seán Power (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)

The Health Bill 2006 assigns responsibility to the chief inspector of social services for the inspection and registration of designated centres. Designated centres are defined as private nursing homes and institutions, homes or centres at which residential services are provided by the Health Service Executive or a service provider for children, people with disabilities or other dependent persons.

A "service provider" means a person who enters into an arrangement under section 38 of the Health Act 2004 to provide a health or personal social service on behalf of the Health Service Executive. The service provider may also be a person who is in receipt of assistance from the Health Service Executive under section 39 of the Health Act 2004 or section 10 of the Child Care Act 1991 of an amount prescribed by regulation.

However, it is technically possible that an agency providing residential services for children or people with disabilities may be in receipt of funding under section 10 of the Child Care Act 1991 or section 39 of the Health Act 2004 which is less than the amount prescribed because the agency is a small scale operation. It would be important that all residential centres are inspected and registered. The Seanad therefore amended the definition of designated centre to ensure there was no possibility of such a residential centre falling outside the remit of the legislation.

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