Mattie McGrath (Tipperary, Independent) | Oireachtas source

Cá bhfuil an tAire Sláinte? Tá sé as láthair arís. It is like: “Cad a dhéanfaimid feasta gan adhmad? Tá deireadh na gcoillte ar lár”. Cad a dhéanfaimid feasta gan an tAire? Cá bhfuil sé? He is never here to deal with serious debates. That is no disrespect to the Minister of State, Deputy Frankie Feighan, but the Minister for Health is so precious. If he was here, he would leave before any of our group come to speak. It is a total abdication of his role as Minister and our right to have him present for these debates.

Someone referred to this debate as being like the Finance Bill or the Social Welfare Bill. At least with the Finance Bill or the Social Welfare Bill people get something out of it, and while they might lose something too, at least it is a cogent piece of work. This is like papering the parlour for the stations mass.

With regard to health insurance, it is the wild west out there. People have health insurance but there are so many excesses and restrictions that they do not have the cover they need, and when they go into hospital, they have to pay all of these excesses on top. It is totally unfair. We have a two-tier system that is not working.

We went off and did a massive deal during Covid with the private hospitals instead of buying one of them under a compulsory purchase order. We brought in legislation to stop thousands of small businesses operating and we cannot do anything with private health because we know the powerful men who own them. That is what is going on. We are lining their pockets. We need to have proper, meaningful legislation that is robust enough and that will deal with the racketeering that is going on. There are powerful and excellent specialist surgeons and doctors, and I support them and salute them, but, as I said, they charge us.

My brother-in-law went into hospital lately after having a mini-stroke. My sister was with him to mind him and the nurse insisted at accident and emergency that she travel 11 or 12 miles back home to get his PPS number and his private health insurance number. Even though he was sitting on a chair and did not get a bed, they wanted to charge the insurer for the price of a bed. I could stay in the Gresham Hotel cheaper. The Burlington or other hotels are a lot cheaper and when people ask for service, they get it. The nurses are so stretched. It is shameful what is going on.

Insurance premiums are being hiked up because of the claims and people do not even know it is happening. If someone is there to have a test, a little form is slipped in front of them and they sign it because they would sign anything if they are ill and want better treatment. It is not right what is going on; it is very wrong indeed.

Why would we not have that? When we had the Minister, Deputy Donnelly, here all through March, April and May, the HSE seconded for Covid step-down patients a beautiful hospital in Carrick-on-Suir that has been there since about 1820. Councillor Kieran Bourke, a very hard-working councillor from the town, came up to Dublin and met the Minister, Deputy Donnelly, and I met him the same evening. He was sure it would be returned as a hospital. The three hospital units there do tremendous work. Huge fundraising was done by the locals of south Kilkenny, west Waterford and south Tipperary. We were told again by the Minister, Deputy Harris, that it would be reopened. However, the staff were informed this morning it is dúnta, shut, finito, gone as an institution - a proud institution, with wonderful staff and with the investments built. They built a huge monstrosity of a primary care centre right beside it that cost €10 million, and it is half empty – follaimh. Now, there are no more hospice beds.

I was promised by the Minister of State, Deputy Butler, there would be some private arrangement with nursing homes. Everything is private - push it out into the private sector, where people are fleeced. The care they got in the palliative care unit there, and the care they got from the specialist nurses and other ancillary staff, was fabulous and it was known locally. Many people from Carrick-on-Suir were born there because it was a maternity hospital. Now, it is no more.

The deceit and the lies we were told are shocking and there is no accountability. The Minister will not even reply to Councillor Bourke, even to registered letters. Neither will the Taoiseach, who is the Fianna Fáil leader. The councillor is so disappointed, a man who served the people on a voluntary basis, and he and others are trying to do their best. People have campaigned to have it reopened and now they find the lights are turned off and they will never again be turned on.

We were promised it was going to be a step-down facility for diabetes or something else. We want it there for respite. We want that as a hospital when people are ill in the area and as a step-down from other hospitals after surgeries. People have died without the palliative care they were entitled to. I know the palliative care teams and the nurses do tremendous work in people’s homes but people need a bed in a hospital. However, it is locked up, gone away from the people, with no access after people have been fundraising so much for years to put the facilities in there. They were put into the new extension in the hospital, which was beautiful, and I have been in to see people there during their last days. It is so sad.

The Minister is gone like snow off a ditch. As I said on another night here, a cat would not go out through a skylight as fast as when we get up to speak here. It is fear. He is not accountable to this House. It is scandalous.

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