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Services for People with Disabilities

Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 5 December 2012

Wednesday, 5 December 2012

Questions (122)

John Browne

Question:

122. Deputy John Browne asked the Minister for Health when he intends to implement the disability related promises in the 2011 Programme for Government especially individual budgets; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54717/12]

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Written answers

The Government is fully committed to the implementation of all disability-related undertakings in the Programme for Government. In respect of individual budgets, the commitment in the Programme for Government is to ‘move a proportion of public spending to a personal budget model so that people with disabilities or their families have the flexibility to make choices that suit their needs best ’. It has not yet been determined whether this will require legislative change.

A personal budget model is one aspect of individualised budgeting, which describes an approach whereby a monetary value is placed on the supports required by an individual with disabilities to live a fulfilled life. It may be implemented in many ways, but the essence of individualised budgeting is that the individual is given more choice and control over how the money allocated to meet their needs is utilised. This approach must be underpinned by a standardised needs assessment to ensure fairness and transparency in the way in which funding is allocated.

The move towards a personal budget model is encompassed by the recommendations in the recently published Value for Money (VFM) and Policy Review of Disability Services, which addresses the wider area of individualised budgeting and person-centred supports and services. In that context, it is intended that the actions recommended in the VFM Review will lay the groundwork for individualised budgeting, once sufficient analysis of the benefits is carried out in the Irish context and adequate financial management, resource allocation and governance structures are in place to ensure its long-term viability. The priority is to further improve current services, while expediting the analysis of the benefits to be gained from a person-centred supports model and developing the administrative and governance infrastructure necessary for a more accountable and individualised service.

As part of the groundwork for individualised budgeting, the Health Service Executive (HSE) will be asked to put a structure around VFM implementation activities in the 2013 Service Plan. The immediate priority will be to achieve greater efficiency in the delivery of current services, including improved unit costing, activity recording and financial reporting, with a view to obtaining a more effective use of resources in the first instance.

The process of evaluating demonstration projects for sustainability and wider applicability will also be put in train. The Department, the HSE and the National Disability Authority have commenced work on the identification of a common assessment tool and the development of a resource allocation methodology, which will provide essential components of the framework necessary to support individualised budgeting and expect to make significant incremental progress on this work during 2013. The allocation of a unique identifier is also necessary to support the delivery of a more individualised service. The Health Information Bill, which is currently being drafted, will provide a legal framework for the use of identifiers in the health system. The Bill is expected to be ready for publication next year.

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