Shortall concerned at consultants who break pay ceiling

MINISTER OF State for Health Róisín Shortall has said she is concerned at the number of hospital consultants who are receiving more in earnings than the Government’s official pay ceiling of €200,000.

She also confirmed that she had raised the issue of consultants’ remuneration with Health Service Executive chief executive Cathal Magee as part of budgetary discussions. She said she had subsequently received a report outlining salary and allowance arrangements for senior doctors in the public health system.

Ms Shortall declined to state specifically whether she supported the position of Minister for Health James Reilly to seek greater flexibility on the part of consultants rather than introducing a pay cut as set out in the programme for government.

In response to a question from The Irish Times on whether she backed Dr Reilly’s stance, the Department of Health said: “The Minister of State shares Minister Reilly’s concern about the cost of consultant care and respects the fact that achieving savings in this area is a matter within the remit of Minister Reilly.”

The issue of consultants’ pay falls outside Ms Shortall’s area of responsibility in the department.

Separately, it is understood that Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform Brendan Howlin wrote to Dr Reilly on Monday of last week seeking details of the progress made in securing greater flexibility from hospital consultants. Sources said Mr Howlin had asked when the engagement with consultants was likely to conclude.

It is understood that Mr Howlin also suggested that the talks with consultants should be in the context of the Croke Park agreement which would allow for “time limits” and “binding discussions”.

A spokesman for the Minister for Health confirmed that Dr Reilly had received a letter from Mr Howlin last week and would be discussing the matters with him.

It is understood that the HSE report, which was sent to Ms Shortall a number of months ago, set out that up to 500 consultants were receiving more than €200,000. Last week the HSE’s former head of human resources, Sean McGrath, revealed these figures for the first time in an interview with The Irish Times. He said one doctor had received over €400,000 from the public system.

Mr Howlin’s letter to Dr Reilly was sent following the publication of Mr McGrath’s comments.

It emerged yesterday that about 30 consultants received more than €500,000 in private earnings from the VHI, the country’s largest health insurer, last year.

The company said the average payout to the 3,002 hospital consultants who provided treatment for its subscribers was €85,956.

Overall the VHI paid out €258 million to consultants. Last year Dr Reilly said the VHI had paid one consultant more than €1 million.

Consultants with private practice who are on the VHI’s earnings list are also likely to have received payments from other health insurers. The Irish Hospital Consultants Association said the figures set out by the VHI represented gross payments.