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An additional 4 billion euros will be made available for the health service in the 2021 budget.
The government said the funding will provide capacity for 100,000 Covid-19 tests per week, supply personal protective equipment where needed and will continue in 2021 with all the necessary measures of the Covid-19 Action Plan that have been in effect since March.
The Minister of Public Expenditure, Michael McGrath, told Dáil that in addition to dealing with Covid-19, permanent capacity and resilience in the health service “must be developed” in line with the review of the capacity of the health service.
He said that the additional funding in the Budget “will allow significant progress in this direction.”
The Department of Health and the Executive of Health Services will deliver the following changes next year:
- 1,146 additional acute beds
- An increase in permanent adult intensive care beds from 255 pre-Covid to 321 by the end of 2021
- 1,250 community beds in 2021, including more than 600 new rehabilitation beds
- Five million additional hours of home care beyond the 19 million provided in 2020
Mr McGrath said that the 2021 funding will support the implementation of the Sláintecare Public Only Consultant Contract and for the accelerated implementation of a number of national strategies, including the National Cancer Strategy, the National Maternity Strategy, the National Strategy of Trauma; as well as the deployment of other social care strategies.
The minister announced that 5 million euros will be dedicated to the development of community services and supports for dementia.
Cancer screening funds are also provided to build greater resilience in the cancer services pathway,
50 million euros are available for new drugs; and € 25 million for a healthy Ireland and the national drug strategy
Minister McGrath said the funding will support immediate action to address waiting lists with approximately 100,000 additional inpatient and day care procedures through investment in public hospitals and utilization of available capacity in private hospitals and through the National Treatment Purchase Fund.
The minister said that mental health services are being prioritized in this Budget “especially given the very difficult year we are living through.”
38 million euros will be available to implement new measures within the framework of Sharing the Vision, the national mental health strategy.
Another priority area for the Government is the area of services for the disabled, he said.
€ 100 million will be provided for new disability measures next year.
“This will support approximately 1,700 students who drop out of school, provide the resumption of day services, promote disability integration, and provide respite services, degregation, and increase personal assistant hours.”
These measures will be supported by up to 16,000 additional positions throughout the health sector.
Minister McGrath also confirmed that Ireland has signed EU advance purchase agreements regarding potential Covid-19 vaccines so that when a medically approved vaccine is available, the country is in a position to benefit from it.
“The professionalism and spirit of our frontline and healthcare workers have been inspiring,” he said.
“Our rapid move to telephone triage, online prescribing, shorter hospital stays, and innovative community care measures has also paved the way for us to modernize our public health system, and we must move on this path in 2021 and beyond. futures. “
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