The Minister for Finance, Michael Noonan, has said that the €232m invested in capital investment in private healthcare since 2004 may have cost the exchequer an estimated €95m in tax relief.

Health Minister James Reilly has insisted everyone will be a winner as a result of his universal health insurance plan — but has failed to reveal exactly how much it will cost the public.

The Independent Hospitals Association of Ireland has said it is seriously concerned over proposals contained in the Health Amendment Bill to charge patients with private health insurance for use of public beds in public hospitals.

It’s hard to get enthused about proposed health reform at a time when the Government is busy picking apart the very structure that, less than a decade ago, was supposed to “change forever the landscape of the Irish Health Service”, according to then minister Micheál Martin.