New entity replaces discredited Hep C body

A new Hep C support group has formed to replace the organisation whose funding was pulled because of concerns about “inappropriate and extravagant” use of public money.

Members of Positive Action Ltd voted to approve the winding-up of the group at an extraordinary general meeting at the weekend. The new entity will operate as the Hepatitis C Anti-D Support Group, the name originally used when the group first got together in 1994.

The setting up of a new group follows a HSE examination of Positive Action’s use of public money in which concerns were raised about the amount of funds spent on, inter alia, weekends away for members, and corporate expenses. The Irish Examiner revealed on Saturday how the group racked up a credit card bill of more than €20,000 between December 2012 and July 2013, with the bulk of the money spent on hotel accommodation and dining out. A further €13,000 was spent in February 2012 on a “pampering and relaxation” weekend at the Athlone Springs Hotel, against the expressed wishes of the HSE.