Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael)
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160. To ask the Minister for Health the waiting list for joint replacement operations in the Royal College of Surgeons hospital group, by individual hospital, for each of the past three years; the number of such replacement joint operations carried out in the hospitals; the location in which they were carried out for the same period; if persons were sent to other hospitals outside this region during this period; if so, the locations to which they were sent to; the cost of these operations; if a cap of 440 joint replacement operations per annum has been introduced; if so, the reason therefore; the date that it was introduced; if a report in the media (details supplied) on 18 September 2017 that one hospital in the region has the capacity to do well in excess of 700 per annum is correct; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40029/17]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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I acknowledge that waiting times are often unacceptably long and I am conscious of the burden that this places on patients and their families.

Reducing waiting times for the longest waiting patients is one of this Government's key priorities. Consequently, Budget 2017 allocated €20 million to the NTPF, rising to €55 million in 2018.

In order to reduce the numbers of long-waiting patients, I asked the HSE to develop Waiting List Action Plans for 2017 in the areas of Inpatient/Daycase, Scoliosis and Outpatient Services. The Inpatient/Daycase Action Plan is being delivered through a combination of normal hospital activity, as well as insourcing and outsourcing initiatives utilising NTPF funding. Under the Inpatient/Daycase Plan, since early February, over 23,000 patients have come off the Inpatient/Daycase Waiting List.

The NTPF has advised that to date 5,295 patients have been authorised for treatment in private hospitals under its Initiatives, 2,126 patients have accepted an offer of treatment in a private hospital and that 1,016 patients have received their procedure. The NTPF has also indicated that 2,703 patients have been authorised for treatment in public hospitals under the Plan’s insourcing initiatives, 767 offers of treatment have been accepted and 177 patients have been treated.

Under the Outpatient Plan, since early February, almost 82,000 patients have come off the Outpatient Waiting List.

In response to the particular query raised, as this is a service matter, I have asked the HSE to respond to you directly.