Treatment Fund 'taken aback' at taxi story

A spokesperson for the National Treatment Purchase Fund (NTPF) has expressed surprise at a doctor's comments to the media that money was unnecessarily paid for a taxi journey to transport a patient from Dublin to Limerick for treatment.

In a statement today, the NTPF spokesperson said: "An older lady who had been waiting nine months from the time she was diagnosed for an eye operation by a consultant was transported for specialised laser procedure which required an overnight stay and a general anaesthetic in Barringtons Hospital in Limerick.

"Her transport was authorised and paid for by the Fund under our transport policy.

"The policy of the NTPF is to provide transport for patients where it is deemed medically necessary or where there are people with special needs, for example the elderly or the infirm. Otherwise patients are responsible for their own transport to hospital for treatment unless they are going abroad.

"We have received no complaint from any patient in respect of our arrangement and frankly we are taken aback in this case that the doctor made no complaint to us but instead went to the news media. Our only interest is to get patients treated and this doctor’s patient was treated to high standard of care."

She went on to say the NTPF doubles up on transport where possible and "the number of patients requiring transport each year is minute".

The NTPF has treated over 35,000 patients to date. Waiting times for 17 out of the top 20 procedures were down to between two to four months in that time.