Dáil debates

Wednesday, 19 January 2011

Health Care Services: Motion

 

8:00 pm

Photo of James ReillyJames Reilly (Dublin North, Fine Gael)

I should have six minutes. Deputy McHugh did not go two minutes over time.

The reason we have some information in regard to the Milliman report is Fine Gael's tabling of this motion. The Minister has had the Milliman report since September, yet she only told us about it in the House yesterday. She gave us a little snap-shot of it and stated she will release the remainder of it, with the commercial information redacted. We have little to be grateful for. Deputy Conlon spoke about the wonders of the medical assessment unit in Cavan General Hospital. While I welcome that unit, there were, according to the IMNO, 45 people lying on trolleys at that unit today. Some 32 people were lying on trolleys today in Tallaght hospital. A total of 444 people were lying on trolleys today in hospitals throughout the country. Many people are not on trolleys but are sitting on plastic chairs with drips hanging out of them while waiting for admission. This is relevant to the VHI. It is a fear of not being able to access the service which encourages people to take out insurance.

The Minister, Deputy Mary Harney, continually muddies the waters saying that the service is excellent. The service is excellent if one can access it. The quality of care in the country is also excellent if one can access it. However, there is a lack of access in both regards. My colleague, Deputy Ring, spoke of a lady with cancer who is waiting for an operation. A colleague informed me today that a public patient who had a scan in November, following which he was diagnosed with cancer and now requires a further scan, will not get that scan until February. That person and his family were left to worry about this all over Christmas, which is unacceptable and is no way to treat people in a modern society.

The proposed VHI increases are horrendous. They are a kick in the teeth to people. I believe it is the VHI telling the Government to get up off its rear end and bring in risk equalisation. A 45% increase on top of increases of 48% over the previous four years clearly makes VHI insurance unaffordable for people. The Minister's failure to introduce risk equalisation is a disgrace. She told us in 2008 that it would take her three years to do so and that in the meantime she would introduce a levy. That levy has resulted in an increase in the cost of insurance for younger people, pushing 70,000 of them out of the market. The VHI is now proposing to hit the very people it is supposed to be protecting, namely, older clients who have remained loyal to it for, in many cases, 40 years.

The VHI is now running a campaign in relation to its provision of free insurance for children. I am told this is costing in the region of €9 million. Consequently, older people will be subsidising younger people rather than the reverse, which was previously the policy. Furthermore, the Minister told us this was revenue neutral, that there was no gain to the Exchequer. The Exchequer got €13 million last year and stands to get another €23 million this year, which amounts to €36 million. So much for spin. This contravenes the Minister's policy on community rating.

I was told today that 50 beds are not open at St. Joseph's Hospital in Raheny, which is an overflow for Beaumont Hospital and could alleviate some of the problems there. There are 26 people lying on trolleys or sitting on chairs in the accident and emergency department at Beaumont Hospital, yet these beds in St. Joseph's Hospital remain unopen. Deputy Collins berated the IMNO for releasing daily figures on trolley-watch. Why would they not do so when they have to listen day-in and day-out to HSE spin that only half a particular number of people are trolleys, with many people as I stated earlier sitting on chairs and in distress?

Deputy Byrne stated that our universal health insurance is flawed. There may be some tweaking to be done in that regard but what is certain is the current system is deeply flawed. It is broken and is not delivering for people.

The VHI has not sought - the Minister has not sought to encourage it to do so - to provide chronic illness care in the community, which would allow people be treated in their communities, or to offer a great range of diagnostics to general practitioners so they can diagnose and treat in the community. Very little prevention takes place in the community and health insurance companies are doing little in that regard. They may have plans. The Minister stated last night there will be further plans on this, she would like to see a bit of that and she will do the other. This is more of her modus operandi - plans for tomorrow instead of action today - while the people suffer day in, day out.

Our economy is wrecked with 440,000 people out of work and young people haemorrhaging out of the country with more making the decision to emigrate. Even more of them will probably leave after yesterday's decision by Fianna Fáil to retain the Taoiseach as its leader. He should go to the country and give people hope. We should have an election. Apart from that, there should be control from Government. The Minister is the principal shareholder in the VHI and she can instruct the board not to implement the increases in charges until there has been a proper debate and an examination of the costs the organisation incurs. As other colleagues have pointed out, bills are paid in many instances without being questioned and no attempt is made to reduce the cost of medical care, despite the company operating as a monopoly for almost 50 years.

I ask the Minister again to consider those who are responsible for building the country and bringing us the Celtic tiger era. They are in the latter years of their lives and, despite their loyalty and all the pain they endured, they will find they cannot afford health insurance, which would give them comfort during years in which they know their medical need will increase. I commend the motion to the House.

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