Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I must be very careful on the floor of the House as I am conscious that we are in an agreement between the Private Hospital Association and the HSE on the use of private hospitals for, in the first instance, a three-month period, which, from memory, runs to the end of June, with the opportunity to extend for a further month and then the opportunity after that of extending on a month-by-month basis with the agreement of both sides. We are not doing it to provide profit for anyone; it is being done on an open cost basis and will be subject to scrutiny by the Comptroller and Auditor General and the Committee of Public Accounts and so on. There is a clear understanding in the agreement that at the end of this month, there is a 30 day review period. I intend that the Department and HSE will use that time to review the arrangement, and there have been many suggestions and comments, and then to arrive at an informed viewpoint to engage with the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform and revert to the Government and the Oireachtas.

It is not my intention to take over the ownership of the private hospitals through this arrangement. It is my intention to try to keep the capacity at the level we require for the Covid-19 pandemic. The question Deputy Shortall asked about the future beyond that is in my view a question for the Sláintecare work being led by Laura McGahey.

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