Plans to introduce new standards at nursing homes and begin inspections by the summer, have been welcomed by stakeholders.
Minister for Health Mary Harney today unveiled the Health Bill 2006 which will create a strict new set of standards residential care centres for children the disabled and the elderly.
It includes an inspectorate of over 100 officers who have powers to make unannounced inspections of public and private facilities. If serious breaches of regulations are found, they are empowered to seek jail terms and heavy fines.
Public confidence in nursing homes was rocked after an RTE documentary in which an investigative report went under cover at Leas Cross nursing home in north Dublin.
It showed elderly patients being treated aggressively, potentially fatal bedsores going untreated and poor hygiene and record keeping.
It later emerged that a number of families had raised serious concerns about their elderly relatives being referred to Leas Cross and other nursing homes often because they believed the medical care was inadequate.
The Irish Nursing Homes Organisation (INHO) said the development of standards applying to the both private and public sector was urgently needed.
INHO chief executive Tadhg Daly: "Currently the public sector, which accounts for 40 per cent of all long-term beds, is not subject to legislative control and is not inspected.
"Introducing minimum standards, and having a single regulatory agency responsible for their enforcement, is critical to bringing about radical and meaningful change and restoring public confidence in the sector".
Age Action said the legislation, if enforced with genuine determination, would prevent further abuse of older people in residential care. It particularly welcomed the proposal to protect whistle blowers
"The ability to heavily fine or imprison owners of defaulting or delinquent nursing homes as well as closing such nursing homes is a major step forward."
"The proposed Whistle Blower's Charter, though not contained in the Bill as it presently stands, also marks the recognition by the Government that Older People need specific protective legislation analogous to the legislation in place for children, Age Action said in a statement.
Age Action regretted however the failure to include day centres or other care settings within the ambit of the Bill.