Written answers

Tuesday, 1 June 2010

Department of Health and Children

Care of the Elderly

10:00 am

Photo of Joe BehanJoe Behan (Wicklow, Independent)
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Question 263: To ask the Minister for Health and Children if she will clarify the person who is responsible for paying the fees for the Health Information and Quality Authority inspections of residential care facilities for older people as announced in March 2009. [23378/10]

Photo of Áine BradyÁine Brady (Kildare North, Fianna Fail)
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The Deputy will be aware that it was decided that the new registration and inspection regime for designated centres for older people, which commenced on 1 July 2009, would mainly be self-financing. In this regard the Health Act 2007 provides for the following fees: Applications for registration or renewal of registration under Section 48. This section states that the applicant shall include with the application the prescribed application fee. An annual fee payable by the registered provider under Section 99 A fee for variation or removal of any conditions of the registration under Section 52. A registered provider making an application under this section must include the fee with their application.

Following analysis of the types of centres, numbers of places, etc. it was decided to set a registration fee of €500, payable every 3 years by each nursing home together with an annual fee of €190 per place in each registered centre. It is estimated that the fee will represent an average weekly cost of €3.73 per registered place. The fees are payable by the registered provider (or in the case of applications for registration by the applicant, who for existing designated centres would normally be the registered provider). These fees are not due or payable by the resident or their family.

The Deputy may be aware that article 28 of the Health Act 2007 (Care and Welfare of Residents in Designated Centres for Older People) Regulations 2009 states that

"(1) The registered provider shall agree a contract with the resident within one month of the admission of that resident to the designated centre.

(2) Such contract shall deal with the care and welfare of the resident in the designated centre and shall include details of the services to be provided for that resident and the fees to be charged."

Therefore, only those fees, including any agreed increases, set out in the contract should be charged by the registered provider to the resident.

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