Róisín Shortall (Dublin North West, Social Democrats)
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615. To ask the Minister for Health the status of the planned introduction of a statutory homecare scheme in Ireland; the status of the proposed timeline for same; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43463/20]

Mary Butler (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
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A high-quality, consistent home-support service, focused on keeping people well in their homes and communities for as long as possible, is a key enabler to ensuring that people across a continuum of care get the right care, in the right place, at the right time.  In this regard, my Department is in the process of developing a statutory scheme for the financing and regulation of home-support.  Work is on-going within the Department to determine the optimal approach to the development of the statutory scheme within the broader context of the on-going reform of Ireland’s health and social care system, as envisaged in the Sláintecare Report.

In 2021, the Department and the HSE is planning to test a reformed model of service delivery for home support, the outcome of which will be used to support evidence-informed decision-making in respect of the scheme.  Funding is being provided in 2021 to establish a National Home Support Office within the HSE to support the delivery of home support services and implementation of the statutory scheme.

In addition, the options for the funding of the new scheme are being examined through work with the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) on the projected demand for, and cost of, home-support services in various scenarios.

The Department is also developing a regulatory framework for home-support services with the aim of ensuring that all service-users are provided with a standard, high-quality level of care, which is safe, effective, and person-centred. It is envisaged that this framework will comprise primary legislation to provide for the licensing of home support providers, minimum standards, and HIQA national standards.

The successful development of a statutory scheme for the financing and regulation of home support services is an ambitious programme of reform. The Sláintecare Implementation Plan commits to the establishment of the statutory scheme by the end of 2021 and significant substantive incremental progress on key elements of the scheme will be achieved by this time.  However key enablers of the scheme that were due to be progressed in 2020, such as the  roll out of the  standard assessment tool (interRAI), were deferred due to COVID-19 and are now occurring in 2021 and funding has been prioritised as part the 2021 National Service Plan.