Margaret Conlon (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)

I am pleased to have an opportunity to make a brief contribution. I want to focus on two aspects, the first of which is the increases the VHI announced over Christmas. Everybody was shocked, dismayed and disgusted by its decision to impose increases ranging from 15% to 45% from 1 February. That level of price increase is unacceptable and I believe it will prohibit many people from taking out private health insurance. I believe the VHI is penalising its good, loyal customers and it needs to examine this decision, rethink it and make a change to it.

One of the first things I did when I started work was take out private health insurance, and I have never regretted it. Many people do likewise. At that time there was no competition in the area but, thankfully, that is no longer the case. There is competition now and many companies are offering alternative plans to those of the VHI. That is to be welcomed because for some people their prices are much more competitive.

People talk about the difficulty elderly people or others might face in shopping around but if one wanted to buy a suite of furniture or a television one would not necessarily go into the first shop one comes across and buy it. One might have a look around first to get the best value. I would advise people to shop around to get the best value for money while getting the same level of cover.

We have benefited from competition and choice and I strongly encourage policyholders to investigate all options before renewing their policies and to feel secure in the knowledge that they can do so without incurring a penalty or waiting times for cover to apply. That is very important, and it is available for all regardless of their age or health profile.

The other aspect is that it is important that all insurers deal with their customers or potential customers in an open and transparent manner. Where that is not happening, the Health Insurance Authority must be appraised of it because it is not a nice practice and it is one I would not like to see developing in the country. It is not fair or acceptable that there would be any discrimination between old and young customers and between people who are sick or those who are not ill. Everybody deserves to be charged the same premium for the same level of cover.

I welcome the statement from the Minister that she plans to bring in new rules to encourage people to take out insurance at a younger age. When people start working they develop good habits, and those good habits remain with them throughout their working life. If one were to start looking for cover when one is older, it is much more expensive. I also welcome the fact that a break period would be permitted when people who find themselves out of work or in financial difficulty.

I refer to the emergency departments where challenges remain, and there will be challenges even into the future. We must continue to focus on the patients and ensure that we are treating the maximum number of patients in a timely manner and that they are channelled to the service they need very quickly. In my own constituency I see the benefits of the medical assessment unit in Cavan where people come in and are treated. For a large percentage of patients they can come in, be assessed, treated and discharged in a timely manner.

We have had changes and reconfiguration in Monaghan and following the next election, whenever it takes place, I do not believe those decisions will be reversed. We will be moving forward, not backward. We will not be rewriting history but I have been advocating for some time that we would have a medical assessment unit in Monaghan where patients who do not need acute care but who need good medical care could be assessed and treated in a timely manner and discharged rather than having them go to Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital or Cavan hospital and clogging up trolleys and beds when that is not necessary.

Some hospitals do very well while others do not. Why is there such a difference in that regard? If some hospitals are doing very well, all hospitals should be able to do that.

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