Cormac Devlin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I congratulate the Minister on his recent appointment. I know it is one of the most challenging roles in Government. I look forward to working closely with him during the term ahead.

The additional expenditure of €2 billion for the health services illustrates the severe impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on our health services. Clearly, the additional resources are welcome and necessary, as we heard in the Minister's speech earlier. During the first few months of the pandemic, the previous Government introduced a range of precautionary measures such as the takeover of private hospitals. This was welcome and necessary. It is clear that it is no longer necessary and I welcome the ending of the HSE's contract with the private providers today. This will allow private hospitals to return to providing services.

As we begin the reopening of the health system, I ask the Minister to prioritise supports for people with disabilities who are on waiting lists and for their families. Obviously, we need to reduce those lists. As the Minister and all other Members will be aware, we have all been contacted by, for example, elderly parents who are gravely concerned about their children or adult family members with intellectual or physical disabilities, whether in regard to respite or accommodation needs.

I ask the Minister to respond to me, perhaps after this session, about the current plans for funding of these vital services for the remainder of 2020.

The Minister will be aware that I spoke to him previously about section 39 funding, in particular for convalescence and step-down services for elderly people. I ask the Minister and the Department to respond again to me about the planned funding for the remainder of this year for that very important area.

Covid-19 has resulted in soaring waiting lists for inpatient and outpatient services. The latest figures show outpatient waiting lists increasing to 575,863 during May alone, while the inpatient day case waiting list now stands at 86,946. I know the Minister spoke about that himself many times, but this underlines the necessity of getting services in hospitals back up and running. I would welcome clarity from the Minister on those issues.

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