James Reilly (Dublin North, Fine Gael)
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Question 166: To ask the Minister for Health and Children the remit the Health Information and Quality Authority has over private health providers; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [24931/08]

Mary Harney (Dublin Mid West, Progressive Democrats)
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A core function of the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) is to set standards on safety and quality of health services and to monitor enforcement of those standards in an open and transparent way. The Health Act 2007 gives HIQA strong powers in this area in relation to services provided by the Health Service Executive (HSE) and bodies funded by the HSE to provide services on their behalf. The process by which such a regulatory regime is introduced first in the public sector is a feature of similar developments in other jurisdictions. A system of inspection of private nursing homes has been in place within the HSE for a number of years and arrangements are currently being made to transfer this function to HIQA as provided for under the Health Act 2007. The extension of this type of monitoring and control to other areas of the private health sector will involve further legislation of a complex nature.

The Commission on Patient Safety and Quality Assurance was established last year to develop proposals for a health service wide system of governance based on corporate accountability for the quality and safety of all health services. One of its terms of reference is to specifically examine and make recommendations in relation to a statutory system of licensing for public and private health care providers and services. The Commission is due to report by the end of July this year. There is already in existence extensive legislation governing the activities of healthcare professionals which includes those operating in the private sector. I will consider what additional appropriate regulatory framework should be applied to public and private healthcare providers and services when I receive the report of the Commission on Patient Safety and Quality Assurance.