Written answers

Wednesday, 4 November 2009

Department of Health and Children

National Treatment Purchase Fund

10:00 am

Photo of Denis NaughtenDenis Naughten (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Fine Gael)
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Question 89: To ask the Minister for Health and Children if she will review the operation of the National Treatment Purchase Fund; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [39269/09]

Photo of Mary HarneyMary Harney (Dublin Mid West, Independent)
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I have no plans to review the NTPF's statutory remit. Its operation is subject to ongoing monitoring and review to ensure that resources are used efficiently and are targeted so that they achieve the greatest benefit for patients. I have emphasised to the Fund the need for maximum cost-effectiveness, consistent with safe and effective care. I have asked it to seek even better value from private hospitals and the Fund has successfully negotiated price reductions for certain high-volume procedures. In addition, it will not purchase services where the price is not acceptable. The Comptroller and Auditor General's Report for 2008 examined the NTPF's arrangements for the procurement of treatment. The Report concluded "The examination suggests that, relative to the casemix benchmark, procedures purchased from private hospitals by the NTPF generally cost less than those carried out in the publicly funded hospital system".

To date the NTPF has provided over 155,000 public patients with in-patient procedures and out-patient appointments. In September 2009, the median waiting time for medical and surgical patients was 2.8 months, down from 2.5 years in 2002.

The Fund's 2009 activity targets involve treating 18,875 inpatients and providing 2,000 MRIs and 5,600 outpatient appointments and it anticipates meeting these targets. At my request, the NTPF is working actively with the HSE to focus on people waiting more than twelve months for treatment. I am pleased to say that the number of such cases fell from 4,637 in December 2007 to 1,178 in September 2008. The two organisations continue to work on this issue, with a view to ensuring that no person is on a waiting list for surgery for longer than 12 months.

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