Consumer survey - Doctors’ fee findings don’t add up

NOT for the first time, the Consumer Association is challenging the findings of an official survey on the prices charged by professionals in rip-off Ireland.

According to a Department of Health study, €36 is the average price patients pay for a consultation with their GP. Remarkably, however, it also found most patients do not regard those fees as excessive.

Yet, it appears medical card holders visit the doctor almost twice as frequently as private patients, which explains why the Coalition reneged on its election pledge to boost the number of card holders by 200,000.