Ex-HSE workers get €2,100 weekly pension payouts
Figures provided by the HSE in response to a freedom of information request show that at the start of this year, the HSE was paying out €100,000 and more to 114 retirees each year.
The detailed breakdown of the figures shows that eight former employees are in receipt of pension payments of €2,300 per week, or in excess of €120,000 per annum.
Five of the top eight are consultant psychiatrists with the top earning pensioner, a retired clinical director in psychiatric services in Dublin-North-East in receipt of €124,654 in pension payments each year.
The annual amounts are taxed and the top 25 recipients are receiving over €113,493 per annum, or more than €2,100 per week.
Separate FoI figures provided by the HSE show that four consultant psychiatrists who retired from the service last year received lump sums in excess of €400,000.
The highest sum received last year amounted to €414,910 for a retiring consultant psychiatrist.
The HSE also revealed a further five retirees — received lump sum payments in excess of €350,000 with a further 17 consultants getting between €300,000 and €350,000. Another nine will receive lump sums totalling between €300,000 and €200,000.
The HSE confirmed that lump sum payments to retirees last year cost €136.8m.
In July of last year, Dr Moosajee Bhamjee retired from the HSE from his post of consultant psychiatrist after serving 40 years in the public health service.
Dr Bhamjee yesterday declined to reveal his lump sum payment. However, he said: “I don’t feel guilty about the amount that I received — I only got what I was entitled to.”
Dr Bhamjee said that if the Government wished to reduce pension payments it could do so by legislation.
He said: “These are entitlements recognised by law. I paid into my pension for 40 years.”
Fianna Fáil health spokesman Billy Kelleher said the lump sum payments were “quite large sums”.
He said: “I don’t believe that the Government can continue to afford these sums and it should give consideration to clawing some of the money back through the tax code.”
