Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Independent) | Oireachtas source

This question pertains to health care, in which the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform has become more involved. It really is an attempt to solve something that has puzzled me for many years. Members are aware there have been significant cuts in health care that have come at great pain to many people. While Ireland's health care expenditure per capitais approximately halfway up the OECD tables, we have one of the youngest populations and research by the National Competitiveness Council shows that when one adjusts for that young population, Ireland has the second-highest health care spend per capitain the OECD, next to the United States. However, as everyone is aware, Ireland's health care outcomes are not second highest. Consequently, in spite of all the pain that has been felt in trying to get on top of the health care budget, Ireland still is spending more per capita, when one adjusts for the young population, than anybody except the United States but is not getting the health care outcomes. There is plenty of external analysis from the OECD and others to suggest that a changed model of health care provision and expenditure could save billions, while improving the level of service delivery. My question is whether the Minister has commissioned an independent report that has gone into the wiring of the Health Service Executive, HSE, to ascertain whether things could be done fundamentally differently.

See this speech in context