Minister for Health Dr James Reilly has said he has been approached by two funds worth €500 million each proposing to invest in primary care facilities in Ireland.
The Minister said the Government was still at an early stage of talking to the funds. He told the Irish Dental Association in Killarney that one of the funds was from the UK and the other from the US.
Dr Reilly said that he was looking tocreate a range of opportunities for primary care practitioners to have ownership and involvement in primary care facilities.
He said the State could not afford to fund all the primary care centres that are required.
The Minister warned that foreign investment "could be frightened off" by a No vote in the forthcoming referendum on the Fiscal Treaty.
He also said that Minister for Enterprise Richard Bruton had not damaged the Yes campaign with his comments yesterady that a second referendum could be held. He said that in the heat of the debate that words can come out in ways that they are not intended.
Dr Reilly said it was unacceptable that between 15,000 and 20,000 Irish children are on waiting lists for orthodontic treatment, as claimed earlier by the new president of the Irish Dental Association, Dr Andrew Bolas. The Minister said a number of initiatives were underway to tackle the issue.
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