Gino Kenny (Dublin Mid West, People Before Profit Alliance) | Oireachtas source

Last November, I questioned the Minister on the cost of private hospitals to the State. He was quite honest about it. He said things would be done differently if we all had hindsight. Last year, the State paid €115 million per month for private hospitals, the equivalent of one third of €1 billion. That is to Larry Goodman and Denis O'Brien.

The Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation, INMO, stated today that all private hospitals should be nationalised immediately because of the emergency. There is a new agreement with private hospitals that up to 30% of their capacity will be taken. We should not be negotiating prices about private hospitals. Instead, we should be commandeering them for this public health emergency.

Does the Minister stand by what he said in November about private hospitals, namely, that there should be oversight and things done differently?

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