€150m hospital funding used to clear overdrafts

MORE than €150 million of this year’s funding for hospitals and agencies in the Dublin region was used to clear lingering overdrafts.

Because of outdated accounting practices, the Health Service Executive confirmed €151.4m was paid to 41 voluntary agencies in the old Eastern Regional Health Authority to cover budgetary overspends.

The figure is 34% higher than the debt built up by the same 41 bodies in 2007 as hospital spending increases.