Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 372 and 376 together.

The Government’s commitment to Sláintecare reform and to ensuring every patient receives the right care, in the right place, at the right time is absolute and unwavering. €1.235 billion was allocated to Sláintecare initiatives in Budget 2021 enabling and supporting major milestones in the implementation of Sláintecare and funding is continuing at historically levels in Budget 2022.

The Sláintecare Implementation Strategy & Action Plan 2021-2023 was approved by Government in May 2021. This is the second three-year strategy that aims to realise the vision of a universal single-tier health and social care system, where everyone has equitable access to services based on need, and not ability to pay. The Strategy focusses on two Reform Programmes, with eleven projects, for 2021 — 2023: Improving Safe, Timely Access to Care; and Promoting Health & Wellbeing and Addressing Health Inequalities. A mid-year progress report was published in September 2021 and an end-of-year Progress Report was published in February this year.

Implementation continued despite the challenges of the major cyber-attack on our health services and the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Substantial key achievements last year and this year to date include approval of the Government’s National Elective Ambulatory Strategy and progressing plans for new elective hospitals in Cork, Galway and Dublin; publication of the Business Case for Regional Health Areas to support the alignment of community and hospital services based on defined population need; and mainstreaming innovation through the Sláintecare Integration Fund.

New governance structures have been put in place, including the new Sláintecare Programme Board, co-chaired by the Secretary-General of the Department of Health and the Chief Executive Officer of the HSE, to ensure that implementation of Sláintecare is fully embedded and owned across the Department of Health and the HSE.

Work is being finalized on a detailed 2022 Action Plan in order continue to deliver on our Sláintecare commitments this year and this will be published in the near future. Key areas of focus this year will include addressing waiting lists, further developments in shifting care to the Community, further investment in innovation, enhanced capacity and access to care, implementing digital and eHealth solutions in line with Government’s recently published national digital framework “Harnessing Digital”, introducing the Sláintecare Consultant Contract, progressing the National Elective Ambulatory Strategy through the provision of new elective capacity in Cork, Dublin and Galway, and the realignment of acute and community services via Regional Health Areas.