Róisín Shortall (Dublin North West, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

This is the latest in the series of annual Bills required to adjust the levels of risk equalisation credits and stamp duties that underpin the risk equalisation scheme and the private health insurance market. The Bill also prolongs the scheme until 2027, following the European Commission's approval under state aid rules, and provides for changes to the appointments criteria and powers of authorised officers in the Health Insurance Authority.

As a starting point it is interesting to look at some of the statistics that are emerging in health insurance. In 2021, premiums paid for health insurance totalled almost €3 billion, which were paid by almost half of the public. This was essentially a health tax . It completely disregards the social contract whereby people pay their taxes according to their means and get access to proper public services in return. That contract does not apply in this country. The Government is levying €3 billion on the public in order for them to get timely access to healthcare; that is what this amounts to. We have this symbiotic relationship between the private health service and the public health service where the weaker the public health service the better it is for business in the private health service.

Sláintecare is all about creating a properly functioning public health service in order that people will have a right and a legal entitlement to access to timely healthcare. This would negate the need for private health insurance.

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