Paul Bradford (Fine Gael)

The Minister is introducing a system of universal care which everybody supports, including the previous speaker. The phrase the Minister used and that we used, mantra-like, at election time was: "The money follows the patient." At the moment, the money follows the doctors, the consultants and all the people who are literally making themselves millionaires out of the provision of health services in this country. I resent that, and it needs to be aggressively tackled.

Arising from the Minister's budget proposals, the word came out that VHI charges would increase dramatically, as would the charges of other companies. We were told about the costs of hospital beds and about changes in the public-private patient ratio. When we hear about hospital beds costing €1,300 or €1,400 per night, we ask how we can pay for it and who foots the bill, but the question we should really be asking is this: how is it that a hospital bed, a doctor, a consultant or any medical intervention costs so much by international standards? We must declare that the day of doctors and medics and professionals being the new elite is over.