Liam Twomey (Fine Gael)

We should examine the issue of private hospitals. A new tax is being introduced on young families whereby they must pay a levy on their private health insurance. We face increasing unemployment and an additional burden will be placed on young families which may mean they will fail to pay for private health insurance. This in itself is wrong when we consider the savage cutbacks in the public health services. Many private hospitals will not survive because they will have a smaller pool of patients because young families will not be able to pay for private health insurance.

The Government seems to be introducing this levy to subsidise the VHI and the argument is made constantly that older people must pay large premiums. To the best of my knowledge, the High Court judgment got rid of risk equalisation but not community rating. One cannot be rated according to age or illness as long as community rating survives and therefore everyone must pay the same premium. If the Minister of State is knowledgeable on this issue, I ask him to inform the House on it. I believe the Minister for Health and Children, Deputy Harney, is misleading the public on why she has increased the tax burden on young families to subsidise the VHI.