Mary Wallace (Meath, Fianna Fail)
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Question 129: To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children the way in which her Department will deal with the many inquiries from families whose elderly relatives were in private nursing care, as distinct from public nursing care, and who when they phoned the special helpline open from 28 February to 4 March 2005 were advised that staff would only deal with cases in public health care; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9259/05]

Seán Power (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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The special helpline referred to by the Deputy was set up to deal with queries arising from the Supreme Court judgment of 16 February which related only to charges in public long-stay institutions and publicly contracted beds in private nursing homes. Issues relating to private nursing homes should be addressed in the usual manner to the HSE in the area where the nursing home in question is situated.

A special Cabinet sub-committee comprising the Taoiseach, Deputy Bertie Ahern, the Minister for Finance, Deputy Cowen, the Attorney General, Mr. Brady, and the Tánaiste, Deputy Harney, has been established to consider all issues in relation to long-stay care in the light of the judgment.