Free prescription medicines, State GPs and expansion of medical cards: Sinn Féin unveils health plan

Party's health spokesperson David Cullinane said plan was to 'massively reduce the cost of healthcare' in move towards towards a 'single-tier universal healthcare system'

Sinn Féin spokesperson on health David Cullinane at the launch of the party's health plan. Picture: Sasko Lazarov/ RollingNews.ie

A Sinn Féin health plan which pledges free prescriptions, 250 State-employed GPs, and a full public health system by 2035 is designed to "breathe life" into Sláintecare, not overtake it, the party has said.

Launching the 120-page document on Tuesday, the party's health spokesperson David Cullinane said Sinn Féin had signed up to the cross-party Sláintecare plan, but the pace of delivery had not been what was needed. However, he said his party's €35bn planned overhaul of the health service was the death knell for the plan agreed in 2018.