Call to raise tax to tackle ‘grey boom’
Dr Cillian Twomey said one-in-four people will be aged over 65 by 2020 and our ageing population will require more resources.
“People believe we are paying enough already in taxation, but I also believe that as a society we want to see our older people properly cared for and perhaps putting protected funding in place to meet their medical needs is something we should look at,” he said.
The Government will have to address these issues because the percentage of people over 65 is set to rise dramatically, he said.
People will also live longer but require more medical care, with the number of people aged over 75 predicted to rise by 20% by 2015, while the number of people aged over 85 is predicted to rise by 30% over the same period, he said.
Dr Twomey, who is Consultant Physician in Geriatric Medicine at Cork University Hospital, said there seemed to be a double standard of care for those who suffer from disabling illnesses like strokes and those with acute problems.
“A stroke is not as trendy as acute hospital procedures - it would not feature on ER,” Dr Twomey said.
Someone who suffers a stroke, which can be seriously disabling, is often told they are not going to get better and nothing more can be done, he said.
Stroke patients are asked if they have a house they can sell and are sent to a nursing home, he claimed.
“The system is far more comfortable dealing with acute patients than the second group of people with disabling illnesses.”
Dr Twomey was speaking at the Population Health Summer School at UCC.
