A third-tier medical card mooted by Health Minister James Reilly must be paid for out of his department’s current budget, according to Finance Minister Michael Noonan.

Social Protection Minister Joan Burton has delivered a stinging public rebuke to Health Minister James Reilly by insisting that she will not tolerate any more cuts to welfare spending to bail out the Department of Health.

The head of the Health Service Executive (HSE) says he believes the organisation will face "challenging" cutbacks in the next Budget.

The Irish Medical Organisation has warned that the health service will collapse “from the inside” and patients will suffer because of a shortage of consultants.