FINE GAEL HEALTH POLICY: UP TO €3.5 billion would be cut from the health budget by 2014 if Fine Gael was in power, the party said yesterday.
At a briefing in Dublin, it said it aimed to save several million euro this year and several millions more in the following two years, and to have reached a point where €1.24 billion would be saved on health spending in 2014 alone. The total savings would be €3 billion-€3.5 billion.
In 2014, some €1.1 billion of the savings will be used to reduce the national deficit. The rest of the savings – €115 million after the €25 million cost of abolishing prescription charges is accounted for – will go on improving childcare, mental health, long-term care and IT. It is also committing €600 million over four years to improving primary care services and the funds will come from the Department of Finance, having been saved in other areas.
Giving more details of the party’s costings on its plan to reform health, Fine Gael said it would introduce a “stripped down” form of universal health insurance by 2016.