Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick, Fine Gael)
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743. To ask the Minister for Health if he will provide in tabular form the amounts currently being charged in public hospitals for basic inpatient overnight accommodation in public, semi-private and private beds; if there are different pricing structures for those patients availing of private health insurance; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8041/14]

James Reilly (Dublin North, Fine Gael)
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The Health Act 1970 (as amended) provides that all persons ordinarily resident in the country are entitled, subject to certain charges, to all in-patient public hospital services in public wards including consultant services and out-patient pubic hospital services including consultants services. For persons availing of public in-patient services, the current public hospital statutory in-patient charge is €75 per night, to a maximum of €750 in any twelve consecutive months. Medical card holders are exempt from public hospital charges.

Section 55 of the Health Act 1970 (as amended) provides for the charging of private in-patients. An essential element of the eligibility arrangements is that the public or private status of a patient must be specified on admission to hospital. Where a patient elects to be treated privately by a consultant the hospital must treat that patient as a private patient. Persons who opt to be private on admission to hospital are liable for the fees of all consultants involved in his or her care and for such charges under Section 55 for that episode of care. With effect from 1st January 2014, private hospital charges, as provided for in the Health (Amendment) Act 2013 are: