Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Senator for raising the issue. I am taking this Adjournment matter on behalf of the Minister of State, Deputy Kathleen Lynch, who has responsibility for older people and who is speaking at a health-related conference.

The nursing homes support scheme is a system of financial support for individuals who require long-term nursing home care. Anyone who is ordinarily resident in the State and who may need nursing home care, regardless of age, can apply for the scheme. The total budget for long-term residential care in 2014 is €939 million. It should be pointed out that a number of people covered by the funding arrangements which preceded the scheme are also covered by this.

The HSE operates a national placement list to enable it to operate within the budget allocated for the nursing homes support scheme. All applicants who are approved for funding are put on the placement list in chronological order by the date of determination of their application. Funding issues to applicants in this chronological order to ensure equity nationally. The current waiting time on the placement list is 15 weeks, with 2,007 people on the list awaiting release of funding. The HSE makes every effort to match available funding to demand by releasing funding on a weekly basis. In the first seven months of 2014, 3,553 new clients were funded under the scheme. The length of time an applicant remains on the placement list depends on the number of new applicants awaiting approval for the scheme at any given time and the number of applicants currently receiving payment under the scheme. Therefore, the duration of time on the placement list can fluctuate.

The provision of services must be managed within available resources. The scheme is continuing to take on new clients within the limits of the resources available, in accordance with the legislation. The resources that are available will be applied to provide the best possible mix of supports and services in a way that most effectively matches the needs and preferences of older people themselves. There is a particular focus on enabling people to live as independently as possible. For this reason, €23 million was transferred from the nursing homes support scheme to provide additional community services, with a view to allowing more older people to be supported in their own homes and communities for longer, which is in line with the expressed wishes of older people.

The Senator will be aware that the nursing homes support scheme is currently the subject of a review. The review will consider the long-term sustainability of the scheme as well as looking at the current operation and management of the scheme. Work on the review is advanced and is expected to be completed in the coming months. The report will then be made publicly available.