Joan Collins (Dublin South Central, Independent) | Oireachtas source

It recently came to light at a meeting of the Joint Committee on Health that private facilities, with separate entrances, would be provided at the new maternity and children's hospitals. These hospitals are being built with State funding at a high cost. A key element of the Sláintecare reforms of the health service is the removal of private practice from the public health system. It seems that the provision of private facilities in these two new public hospitals flies in the face of this key element of Sláintecare, namely, the separation of private medicine from the public system.

Under the Sláintecare action plan announced late last year, a report was commissioned on the issue of separation of public and private care. The report was to be produced by a group headed by Dr. Donal de Buitléir. I understand that such a report has been with the Minister for Health and his officials for some weeks now. Will the Minister make the de Buitléir report, and any recommendations it contains, public and available for discussion in the Dáil where the Sláintecare proposals received widespread cross-party support? Will the Taoiseach give a commitment that no private medical facilities will be planned or provided at the new maternity and children's hospitals? At the very least, will he give a commitment that this House will have an opportunity to debate the issues in the report before any such facilities are provided?

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