Jackie Cahill (Tipperary, Fianna Fail)
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243. To ask the Minister for Health if he will review the cost demands being placed on private nursing homes by HIQA, considering the large financial cost that can be placed on a nursing home after a HIQA inspection, and considering that numerous HIQA inspections at the same nursing home and the demands arising out of these can make the operations of a private nursing home financially unviable, resulting in their closures across the country; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24435/24]

Mary Butler (Waterford, Fianna Fail)
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The Chief Inspector of Social Care and the Health Information Quality Authority (HIQA) is the national independent regulator of designated centres for older people including public community nursing units and private nursing homes. These nursing homes are subject to registration and inspection by HIQA, a process which is underpinned by a comprehensive quality framework comprising of Registration Regulations, Care and Welfare Regulations and National Quality Standards. I fully support HIQA in upholding these vitally important regulatory standards, as they provide a key role in the health system and are central to the success of the nursing home sector in undertaking its functions to ensure a safe, quality service is being provided to residents.

Where issues are identified during a HIQA inspection of a designated centre, the provider must act to address them, and inform the Chief Inspector in writing through a compliance plan how and when issues will be resolved. HIQA is committed to an open and transparent relationship with its stakeholders.

The Government is conscious of the financial challenges faced by the nursing home sector overall, especially smaller and voluntary nursing homes that may not have access to the same economies of scale as larger homes or groups. The Department of Health seeks to identify improvements to the ways in which the nursing home sector is supported to ensure that long-term nursing home care is sustainable, accessible, and affordable to everyone. The Government is committed to delivering additional support to the nursing home sector and have delivered increases in year-on-year funding for the Nursing Homes Support Scheme (NHSS or Fair Deal).

In addition, in December 2023, I announced the implementation of a €10 million scheme to improve infection prevention and fire safety in private and voluntary nursing homes. The Nursing Home Resident Safety Improvement Scheme commenced on January 1st 2024, and provides funding towards structural works carried out to improve compliance with the standards published by the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) under Regulation 27 (Protection against infection) and Regulation 28 (Fire precautions). This scheme opened for applications on the 2nd of February 2024 and the closing date for applications is the 15th of November 2024.

This scheme is a vouched scheme which is open to all operational voluntary and private nursing homes registered with HIQA and the National Treatment Purchase Fund (NTPF) as of 1 January 2024. Up to €25,000 is available to each qualifying nursing home for eligible works under this scheme. Nursing homes may also claim retrospectively for works covered by this scheme if they were carried out since 1 January 2020.

I encourage all eligible nursing homes to make an application if they have not already done so.

It must be recognised, however, that many nursing homes are privately owned and operated businesses and nursing home owners may choose to exit the market for a variety of reasons.