Mary Butler (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

Neither the Department nor NTPF has any direct role in setting pay in private sector nursing homes.

The NTPF has been designated by the Minister for Health pursuant to Section 40 and Section 41 of the Nursing Homes Support Scheme Act 2009 as a body authorised to negotiate with proprietors of non-HSE registered nursing homes to reach agreement in relation to the maximum price(s) that can be charged for the provision of long-term residential care services to NHSS residents. Maximum prices for individual nursing homes are agreed with the NTPF following negotiations and based on the NTPF’s cost criteria.

The objective of the NTPF is to agree a price with each nursing home that offers value for money to the State having regard to the following criteria:

a) the costs reasonably and prudently incurred by the home and evidence of value for money;

b) the price(s) previously charged;

c) the local market price; and

d) budgetary constraints and the obligation of the State to use available resources in the most beneficial, effective and efficient manner to improve, promote and protect the health and welfare of the public

The NTPF carry out this role independently under the NHSS Act 2009. The NTPF has statutory independence, and there is no role for Ministers or the Department of Health in these negotiations.

The Department of Health published a review of the NTPF pricing system in June 2021 and made several recommendations. A steering group has been established to oversee the delivery of these recommendations; this group has met on a regular basis since publication of the review and continues to work on taking these recommendations forward.

The Department of Health continues to engage with the NTPF to examine ways in which funding can be used to provide support to nursing homes. In addition, the NTPF will shortly be seeking up-to-date financial and operational information from nursing homes to inform further analysis and considerations of measures to support the sector.

The reform of the pricing system for private and voluntary nursing homes should not be viewed in isolation but in the context of wider sectoral reforms which continue to be brought forward.

The Government remains committed to delivering on:

• The nine recommendations that emerged from the Value for Money Review on Nursing Home Costs,

• The 86 recommendations of COVID-19 Nursing Homes Expert Panel, especially those recommendations related to long-term sectoral reform,

• The four recommendations of the NTPF Review of Pricing System for Long Term Residential Care Facilities and

• The 16 recommendations of the Strategic Workforce Advisory Group on Home Carers and Nursing Home Health Care Assistants.

Work continues within the Department of Health to deliver on all of these recommendations, as well as analysing the outcomes of the Skills Mix and Safe Staffing pilots which will serve to inform future policy-making.

The Government is committed to seeing greater public sector involvement in the residential care of older people in Ireland and to move over time towards a needs-based model of funding and pricing for the nursing home sector.