Eamon Gilmore (Dún Laoghaire, Labour) | Oireachtas source

What is being proposed is that the cost of a public bed in a public hospital should be chargeable to the insurance company where there is insurance involved. As we all will be aware, the private health insurers charge for everything - the consultant, the anaesthetist and, if it is a private bed, the bed - but at present the hospital cannot charge for the use of the public bed, and that is what is being proposed.

As Deputy Martin stated, the amount of money it is proposed that will raise is €60 million this year. Against a total pay-out by the insurance industry of €2.2 billion, €60 million does not amount to a 15% increase in premiums, even if it were passed on. There are greatly exaggerated statements being made about that.

The Government is undertaking a major reform of the health services to reduce the cost of delivering them. The Minister for Health will shortly bring forward his proposals on hospital groups which will streamline services for patients and the Minister of State, Deputy Alex White, is overseeing a chronic illnesses programme which will see patients treated more cost-effectively in primary care settings rather than expensive hospital settings. We are doing this also, of course, while having to reduce the budget for the health services due to the state in which the Government of which Deputy Martin was a Minister left the country.

Private inpatients in public hospitals are subject to maintenance charges, that generally range from €586 to €1,046 per day, when they are accommodated on a private or semi-private basis and this charge is separate to the private consultant fees which a patient also pays. Approximately 20% of beds in public hospitals are designated as private beds. The other beds are designated as public beds, with the exception of a small number of beds which are not designated. If a private designated bed is not available and a private inpatient is accommodated in a public bed, the maintenance charge is not levied. As a result of this practice, hospital maintenance charges are not payable by private inpatients occupying public designated beds or non-designated beds. The change, which is being proposed and which is in the draft legislation which is coming forward, is to provide for the charging of the public beds. That makes sense. If the hospital can charge for the private bed, it ought to be able to charge for the public bed rather than having the entire cost of that fall on the taxpayer.

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