Declan Breathnach (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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203. To ask the Minister for Health if he will intervene in a matter (details supplied); if his attention has been drawn to the fact that the facility has to turn persons away that are members of a company due to this refusal and that these persons have nowhere else to turn to in the region; if his attention has been further drawn to the fact that the facility is struggling to maintain its staffing levels due to this refusal; if his attention has been drawn to the fact that this refusal is contrary to EU law; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [12274/17]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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Health Insurance companies including VHI operate as commercial providers and as Minister for Health, I have no legal power to intervene in relation to their commercial decisions.

I am advised by VHI that in order to be approved for health insurance coverage, providers of new facilities must be independently accredited for quality purposes and either:

(a) demonstrate that they meet an important medical need which is not met by existing facilities and do so at competitive cost relative to those of providers of facilities that can be reasonably be compared with them; or

(b) provide medical services at prices which are sufficiently competitive as may enable VHI to obtain lower prices for such services generally in a significant area.

The VHI's initial assessment is that its criteria has not been satisfied but they are meeting with the applicants again to discuss the issue further.