Tom Hayes (Tipperary South, Fine Gael)
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Question 121: To ask the Minister for Health and Children her views on whether the VHI will not meet the requirement to achieve solvency of 40% by the end of 2008; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [45632/08]

Mary Harney (Dublin Mid West, Progressive Democrats)
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The Voluntary Health Insurance Board (Amendment) Act, 2008 imposed an obligation on the VHI to acquire a reserve fund sufficient to allow it to submit an application for authorisation to the Financial Regulator by 31 December 2008. Any decision on whether to grant authorisation or not is entirely a matter for the Regulator. The VHI submitted an application in June. However, before any decision on the application had been taken by the Regulator the Supreme Court found the 2003 Risk Equalisation Scheme to be ultra vires on 16 July. One consequence of the Court's decision was that VHI would not receive the transfers due to be paid to it under the scheme. This development had an adverse impact of the financial projections submitted to the Regulator in June as part of the application. The Regulator has asked the VHI to submit revised projections. These will reflect the anticipated impact of the measures announced by the Government on 19 November. The company is exploring all the options open to it under the 2008 Act that would help satisfy the Regulator's solvency requirements.