Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy for raising this important issue. I have also had a nursing home in my own constituency under an awful lot of pressure. It puts huge strain on families as well when they do not know what the future holds in terms of whether the nursing home is going to stay open.

The Government is conscious of the financial challenges faced by the nursing home sector, especially smaller and voluntary nursing homes. They may not have access to the same economies of scale as larger homes or groups. As the Deputy knows, the Government has provided substantial support to the private and voluntary nursing home sector over the pandemic period. Over €151 million of financial supports have been provided to private and voluntary nursing homes through Covid-19 temporary assistance payments. The provision of free personal protective equipment and oxygen to private nursing homes continues, costing approximately €77 million to date. A new €10 million scheme was established last year to support private and voluntary nursing homes with increased energy costs, covering 75% of year-on-year cost increases up to a monthly cap of €5,250 per nursing home. This scheme was extended for a second time to the end of June 2023 with a further short-term extension under review.

The Minister of State, Deputy Butler, has regular interaction with the National Treatment Purchase Fund, NTPF, and has met it to discuss ways to support the sector where necessary and appropriate to complement the normal process of negotiating rate increases when contracts are renewed. Anyone who has had a scheduled renegotiation of his or her deed of agreement this year with the NTPF has seen a significant uplift, an average baseline increase in price per bed of between 6% and 7%. From what the Deputy is saying, that is not enough for some nursing homes but it is important to put it on the record. Other options to support nursing homes are also being explored, such as to help with the often costly nature of compliance for nursing homes under the necessary Health Information and Quality Authority regulations.

Ensuring that the welfare and safety of residents is secured when nursing homes close is of course of the utmost importance and work to alleviate the concerns of residents must continue. Fourteen private nursing homes closed last year while nine private nursing homes have closed so far this year. A further two private nursing homes which are currently active have notified closure for this year. Four new centres opened last year and four new centres have already opened in 2023. As of the most recent HIQA report up to the end of June, overall 2022 saw a net addition of 112 registered beds to the total national capacity of private beds, while this year we have seen an increase of about 222 to date. This is due to the relatively large size of the new nursing homes compared to those closing, which have less capacity.

I recognise the point the Deputy is making. For many smaller nursing homes in more rural parts of Ireland, they do not have the economies of scale and cost base that some of the larger nursing homes and groups have. The concern the Deputy is outlining is that this needs to be reflected in the support the Government gives them. I take on board what the Deputy is saying and will certainly raise it with the line Minister. There are different rates applying depending on different circumstances. What the Deputy is suggesting is that the deviation is not wide enough.

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