Dan Neville (Limerick West, Fine Gael)

I welcome the opportunity to discuss the matter and I congratulate and commend Deputy Reilly on introducing it. The issue is of great concern to many people. It is difficult for the many people who were used to health insurance to cope with the increase. People could not afford the premia before the increases and since the recent increases were introduced, it is evident that fewer people will get insurance with the VHI. That is especially the case with the elderly because they got hit with a 45% increase. Many people who have paid health insurance for up to 50 years are more concerned with health insurance than ever because of their stage in life. They will be forced to drop their health insurance with which they were comfortable all their lives. Now is a time when such people should be able to relax and enjoy their retirement. For various reasons there are 70,000 fewer people in the VHI in the past two years. The targeting of older people is unfair. I understand the difficulty that exists for the VHI but that is by virtue of the fact that the Government has not acted on risk equalisation. We now understand that risk equalisation will not be introduced until 2013. In ruling against the previous proposal, the court said there was some difficulty with it. It did not say it was unconstitutional or unfair but that legal problems existed. I do not know why we must wait until 2013 to correct legal problems many lawyers tell us could be corrected within months if the will was there to do it.

It is some time since I had an opportunity to discuss suicide with the Minister. I will use my remaining time to focus on that issue. The Minister of State, Deputy John Moloney, usually deals with the matter. I commend him on his efforts but I am disappointed he has not had support from the Government by way of the resources he should get. The Minister must recognise that the level of suicide and suicidal behaviour is a serious social health issue which must be comprehensively addressed and the necessary services put in place.

Research going back to the 1980s demonstrates that suicide and mental illness increase in times of recession and that suicide is linked to financial disasters. It should not come as any surprise that we continue to see more stress, suicide and mental disorders. Official figures indicate that suicide rates increased in 2009 by 25%. The potential psychological impact of economic recession on public health is severe. People who are unemployed are two times more likely to die by suicide than those in employment. The high rate is partly because people with psychiatric illness are at a greater risk of losing of their jobs. There is an association between unemployment and suicide. However, even among young people with no record of serious mental illness, unemployment is associated with a 70% greater risk of suicide. Prospective individual levels of suicide show that unemployment has a causal influence on depression and suicidal thinking. Job insecurity is associated with a 33% greater risk of common mental disorders - mainly anxiety and depression. People with mental disorders are more likely to be in debt than those who have no mental disorder. A research document from the United States indicates that a loss of income rather than low income was associated with increased suicide levels. I take the opportunity to impress on the Minister that greater resources should be invested in the area and there should be a response because of the special circumstances at the moment.

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