MORE than €18m will be slashed off the budgets of 17 poor performing hospitals this year.

ALMOST €14 million will be slashed off the budgets of 18 hospitals in 2010 as a result of inefficiencies last year.

MORE than 20 hospitals have had their budgets slashed by a total of €9.37 million as a result of inefficiencies in 2004.

HOSPITALS guilty of bad management and delaying the discharge of patients have been hit with fines totalling €4.4 million.