Varadkar insists he has been ‘honest and upfront’ about 2015 health budget

Minister for Health Leo Varadkar has defended his approach to the 2015 health budget and said he and Minister of State Kathleen Lynch had been "honest and upfront" about what can be delivered next year.

“We have not over-promised,” he said. “We have been realistic and we have explained the modest increase in resources being provided for the health service in 2015 is a first step and part of a two-year process to stabilise the health service budget.”

Responding to a Fianna Fáil private member’s motion on funding the health service, Mr Varadkar said the HSE was taking the necessary steps to improve the operation of the medical card scheme, particularly the discretionary cards.

He asked for “patience” over the next six to eight months it would take to implement the steps announced last week. “I don’t claim that the new system will be perfect but I will continue to oversee the implementation of these steps.”

The Minister acknowledged that delayed hospital discharges could not wait until the new year. It was not a satisfactory situation, he wanted to address it and measures were under way to deal with the issue.

Smaller hospitals

Fianna Fáil Galway East TD Michael Kitt said grade 2 and grade 3 hospitals appeared to be forgotten about. It had been proposed that as well as sharing work between hospitals, the smaller hospitals would carry out more procedures and he was disappointed that this had not happened. Independent

Mick Wallace

(Wexford) said the Government would do better by investing more in the health service than by cutting taxes. Mr Wallace highlighted the case of a cancer patient, advised to stay away from anyone with infections, who was placed on a chair near people with a vomiting bug in Beaumont Hospital.

Independent Tom Fleming (Kerry South) said there were now 60,000 fewer people on medical cards. He pleaded with the Minister not to act in a "heavy-handed" manner towards medical card renewals.

‘Mad Hatter situation’

Independent Socialist

Clare Daly

(Dublin North) said a “Mad Hatter situation” existed where the small Jack & Jill charity was propping up the HSE with regard to the care of very vulnerable children with severe disabilities.

“If we really want to improve our health service then we need to base ourselves on community provision, palliative care and a much greater emphasis on those areas,” said Ms Daly.