Vol. 442 No. 1
91 Mr. G. Mitchell asked the Minister for Health if a person (details supplied) in Dublin 12 whose wife is having valve replacement in a Dublin hospital and who is in semi-private accommodation at present but is not covered by VHI, will be covered to the extent of the normal cover in a public ward.
Under present eligibility arrangements hospital patients may elect to be accommodated as public, semi-private or private patients. Where a person opts for private or semi-private accommodation, as in this case, he or she is liable for the appropriate maintenance charge together with the statutory in-patient charge of £20 per day, where applicable. In the case referred to by the Deputy the charge for semi-private accommodation in the public hospital is £104 per day, together with the £20 statutory charge. Persons who opt for public accommodation are liable only for the statutory in-patient charge but in certain cases, e.g. medical card holders, this charge will not apply.
