Batt O'Keeffe
Question:192 Mr. B. O'Keeffe asked the Minister for Health the plans, if any, he has to provide funding in the region of £2,396,000 for priority equipment in the acute hospitals in the Southern Health Board area. [1267/96]
Written Answers. - Priority Equipment Funding.
Limerick East): I am aware that the Southern Health Board has recently submitted an updated list of equipment requirement totalling £2,396,000. This will be considered in the context of competing priorities within the acute hospital services sector and the resources available for 1996 for this purpose.
The Deputy will wish to know that during the past year substantial funding has been made available to the Southern Health Board area towards the purchase of priority items of equipment for each of the acute hospitals. Capital grants totalling in excess of £1 million were made available to the health board and voluntary hospitals in the region.
In addition, substantial funding was made available to the Southern Health Board area under the 1995 high technology initiative to meet the cost of specific high-technology developments in the acute hospital sector.