Mattie McGrath (Tipperary South, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I apologise as I was delayed. I compliment and thank the proposers of the motion, which is worthy. We must examine the issue. The population is ageing and, by extension, will become sicker. We discussed the costs of various issues, including generic drugs, in the term of the previous Government. I am a victim of the system myself. I was rushed to a private hospital in the city last Tuesday. I am paying private health cover for the past 20 years. Thankfully, I came out the other side but I had a nice little bill of €395. My insurance did not cover the visit. I was told that I had to go back for a scan which will cost €700, which again is not covered even though I am paying health insurance for 20 years. Health insurance is becoming more expensive and less cover is provided. It is time for someone to stop the racket, the abuse and the extortionate charges of a range of people, including consultants, to the health care companies.

I do not know how many increases we have had in the past two years. No doubt the Fianna Fáil spokesman and others have outlined the details. We must grasp the nettle and deal with the issue because private health care charges are exorbitant. We were promised changes in governance and a difference by the Government before the election. We were promised a new era of transparency and openness. However, we have a Minister who is compromised because he is involved in private health care. He is involved in a private nursing home in my county. I said it previously. I thought the Taoiseach would have moved the Minister. He is someone who should understand the brief as he is eminently qualified. I do not challenge his bona fides in that regard. However, he has a vested interest. The Minister previously acted on behalf of his colleagues to strike a lucrative deal with the Government for a group of people within his own profession.

Now the Minister is involved in property speculation. He is in charge of the HSE which employs HIQA. The latter closed down a nursing home in my county. It literally terrorised and persecuted the nursing home. When I inquired I discovered that HIQA had made only one fleeting visit to a nursing home in which the Minister has a stake. How about that for transparency and openness? Is it a case of jobs for the boys or we do what we like, not as we say? It is not fair. What is going on in health insurance is just a racket. It is disgraceful. It is going on in other areas of insurance also but it will not change until someone shouts “Stop”. People cannot afford to pay premiums. They are walking away in their droves from paying health insurance as they cannot afford it and the people who are paying are not covered when they require treatment. The genie is out of the bottle. Someone had better try to examine the situation and deal with it.

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