Vol. 525 No. 5
250 Mr. R. Bruton asked the Minister for Health and Children the cost of reducing the deductible in the drug subsidisation schemes from £42 per month to £20 per month; and the cost of eliminating the deductible entirely. [25466/00]
As information is currently only held in respect of claims in excess of £42 per month it is difficult to estimate the cost of reducing the co-payment to £20. A rough estimate would be of the order of £50 million – £60 million per annum. A rough estimate of the cost of the elimination of the deductible, i.e. the State meeting the full cost of all prescribed medicines, would be up to £400 million per annum.
