Healthcare cuts will hurt the vulnerable

THE recent announcements made in relation to the series of cuts and charges being considered by the Government are alarming.

In honouring the commitment in the programme for government to “act speedily to reduce costs”, the Government must ensure that cuts do not have a detrimental impact on the most vulnerable. This government was elected partly because of its rejection of the idea “that society should be divided into the haves and have-nots”. It promised to treat all citizens equally, and to put an end to the two-tier health system. Its list of proposed charges will only serve to reinforce inequalities that they had so strongly criticised, by penalising those who have not, and further undermining the right to health.

Good healthcare reform will take time, and the Government has made bold and welcome commitments in that regard. However, Fine Gael and Labour have been in office for eight months, yet cannot provide any time frame for the first step (the White Paper on Financing Universal Health Insurance) other than that it will be within the current term of office. I urge Minister Reilly to reconsider these proposed health cuts. Penalising the vulnerable will not bring about the kind of health reform that the Government was elected to deliver.