Vol. 447 No. 1
284 Mr. McCormack asked the Minister for Health if a special grant will be made available to the Western Health Board to enable them to pay subvention grants to nursing homes in the Western Health Board area in view of the fact that the money allocated to the Western Health Board only allowed grants to be paid up to August 1994; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3685/94]
288 Éamon Ó Cuív asked the Minister for Health the average time taken in the Western Health Board area to process an application under the nursing homes subvention scheme; and the total amount of applications that have not yet been processed. [2984/94]
289 Éamon Ó Cuív asked the Minister for Health when payment under the nursing home subvention scheme for the month of September 1994 will be paid in the Western Health Board area; and if the health boards have funds to pay the subvention to the end of 1994 as it falls due. [2985/94]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 284, 288 and 289 together.
The Nursing Homes (Subvention) Regulations, 1993 provide that a health board shall inform an applicant in writing within eight weeks of the receipt of the application, or, if all the information sought has not been provided with the application, within eight weeks of the receipt of the information requested, of its decision whether or not to pay a subvention to the person to whom the application refers and the amount of any subvention to be paid.
The Western Health Board inform me that in accordance with the regulations each applicant is informed of the outcome of his or her application within eight weeks of making such application if all the appropriate information is provided of the time of application. However, the board's experience has been that applicants do not provide all the necessary information at the time of making an application.
There are currently 240 applications for nursing home subventions on hand in the Western Health Board area. The application process was delayed somewhat by the recent dispute involving Acting Directors of Community Care. The board state that these difficulties have now been resolved.
Accounts in respect of the month of September have been processed and payment to the nursing homes will issue shortly. Following recent discussions between officials of my Department and the Western Health Board concerning funding for the Nursing Homes Act, it was agreed to allocate an additional £800,000 to assist the implementation of the Act in 1994. The board is now satisfied that there will be sufficient funds available to fund the scheme to the end of the current financial year.
