Mary Harney (Dublin Mid West, Independent)

As Minister, I am concerned to see that health care is provided in a way that is affordable and sustainable for the country as a whole and, most of all, that the resources we devote to health achieve the best possible outcomes for patients and the best health status for the population. I do not have a role in the day-to-day operation of either private hospitals or private health insurance providers, nor should I. The negotiation of fees between private hospitals and health insurance providers is a commercial matter for the parties themselves. It is not possible, therefore, for me to make direct comparisons of the type suggested.

It may be useful to note that the Department of Health and Children is currently undertaking a value for money and policy review of the economic cost and charges associated with private and semi-private treatment services in public hospitals. The review seeks to determine the extent of the gap between current charges and actual costs in public hospitals. The review does not seek to compare costs between similar services in the public and private hospital sectors, since it is not considered that this should be the key consideration in setting the level of charge in public hospitals.

It is also the case that the National Treatment Purchase Fund negotiates treatment prices with private and, to a limited degree, public hospitals. The Comptroller and Auditor General's report for 2008 examined the NTPF's arrangements for the procurement of treatment. It concluded that, relative to the casemix benchmark, procedures purchased from private hospitals by the NTPF generally cost less than those carried out in the publicly funded hospital system. However, for reasons of commercial confidentiality, the actual prices payable have not been disclosed publicly.

Where the HSE decides to purchase an element of service from the private sector, the executive satisfies itself that the price paid compares favourably with known costs in the public hospital system. Such arrangements are also of course subject to the normal rules on public procurement.

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