Simon Harris: There can be no public versus private in hospitals' battle against Covid-19

Private hospitals will operate as public hospitals for the duration of the Covid-19 emergency in the latest effort to curb the progress of the virus and treat those who need care.

The move to effectively nationalise the health system was announced by Taoiseach Leo Varadkar and forms part of a raft of fresh government initiatives to push back the spread of the coronavirus and prevent hospitals from being overwhelmed by the expected tide of cases.