HSE gets extra €1.1bn for health services
The HSE recently imposed a recruitment ban and other cost-cutting measures in an attempt to reduce its financial deficit, running at more than €200 million.
Health Minister Mary Harney said the increase of €935m, or 7%, was arrived at when the nursing home repayment scheme was excluded. “When account is taken of projected savings of €150m in 2008 in the cost of medicines, the true underlying increase is €1,085m or 8.3%,” she pointed out.
But the increase is slightly less at 5%, or €602m, with the overall total provision of €12bn taking account of the repayments scheme. It excludes the effect of drug payments.
A sum of €325m has been allocated to meet the projected cost of public service pay rate increases.
The pre-Budget estimates provide for an across-the-board increase of 7% for each of the HSE regions, for hospitals and the medical card scheme.
The minister said the next step would involve the HSE submitting its 2008 service plan for her approval. She said the plan would outline the type and volume of services that the health authority planned to provide within yesterday’s pre-Budget figures.
Ms Harney said the service planning framework for next year was being improved to establish clearer links between, on the one hand, funding provided and employment ceilings authorised and, on the other, levels of delivery and progress made in implementing the Government’s policy objectives.
This year, for the first time, the estimates only cover the updated cost of continuing to provide the existing level of services with all service development measures announced on Budget day.
The increase of €58m for the Office of the Minister for Children from €484m to €542m includes €460m for childcare programmes, up 13%. The additional funding provided is to deal with the increase in the birth rate and migration.
