Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 16 July 2013
1121. Deputy James Bannon asked the Minister for Health if he will provide an account of all programmes dedicated to the treatment for research on mental illness; the amount each programme receives annually; the amount dedicated to the treatment of serious mental illness; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35174/13]
View answerThe information requested by the Deputy in relation to the funding allocated to mental health research, by publicly funded bodies in the health sector, is being collated and I will provide it to the Deputy as soon as it becomes available.
Funding for mental health services increased this year from €711 million in 2012 to €733 million. This allocation includes an additional €35 million provided in Budget 2013 for the continued development of mental health services across a range of headings, including the further development of forensic services and community mental health teams for adults, children, older persons and mental health intellectual disability, and to the recruitment of 477 additional staff to implement these measures. About 1 in 4 people will experience some mental health problems in their lifetime. Approximately 90% of mental health problems are dealt with in primary care and some 30% of people who attend primary care have a mental health problem. Expenditure on these services is not captured in these figures.
