Payments to those illegally charged in public nursing homes will begin in the autumn, Minister for Health Mary Harney said.
"I hope we will start to make repayments towards the end of the year, beginning in the autumn, but it will not be before the summer."
Ms Harney said litigation pending on the private nursing home issue would be "vigorously defended" by the State.
"I believe everybody would accept we could not possibly pay for everybody in a private nursing home."
She said it was intended to have any necessary legislation passed before the summer recess.
"As this will obviously be a mammoth logistical task, we are going to tender to get assistance because the last time the health service was in a position in which repayments had to be made, it took a considerable length of time - I believe it was up to three years - to reimburse a relatively small number of people in comparison to the number involved in the current case."
Ms Harney said monies to be paid back would not be used to prevent people getting social welfare entitlements.
"In other words, it would not be used for the purposes of means-testing people, which would be very unreasonable."
On funding for the health services, Labour leader Pat Rabbitte noted that Ms Harney had promised further involvement for the private sector.
"Did she mean Mr Ben Dunne and other benefactors through the Liveline programme?" he asked. "I wonder if the health service, like Mr Charles Haughey, will end up dependent on Ben Dunne."
Ms Harney said while there was some private sector investment in the health services, there was a need for more capital investment.
"We welcome Irish or other money if it becomes available to provide services. Generous as €30,000 is, one can imagine how much it would do in the context of €12 billion."
