Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 27 July 2021
1761. Deputy David Cullinane asked the Minister for Health the cost of providing universal palliative care; the measures required to achieve same; the basis on which this funding must be made available that is, one-off or recurring; the revenue and capital split of this funding; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35469/21]
View answerAs the Deputy may be aware, over €76m was allocated for Palliative Care services when the Sláintecare Report was published in 2017. The report estimated that universal palliative care could be delivered with an additional €50m over the first five years of the plan. This included funding for LauraLynn Hospice, child respite and palliative care as well as specialist palliative care services for adults. There has been significant progress in the past five years towards achieving universal palliative care, with 268 hospice beds expected to be in place by the end of the year and funding provided for LauraLynn Hospice in the palliative care budget for the first time in 2021. Furthermore, the HSE has committed in the National Service Plan 2021 to working alongside the voluntary hospice groups and philanthropic bodies to progress the plans for new inpatient units in Louth, Offaly and Cavan.
A key commitment in the Programme for Government is to update the Palliative Care policy for adults to reflect the main developments in end-of-life care and international best practice since 2001 and with a view to addressing the interface with children's palliative care.
It is envisaged that the new policy will take account of increased demand for adult palliative care and the shift towards care in the community in line with the vision of Sláintecare. It is also envisaged that the updated policy will endeavour to address the emphasis in Sláintecare on addressing geographic variations in the provision of both community and hospital palliative care services to achieve access to universal healthcare in Ireland. This work will assist my Department in updating the cost of achieving universal palliative care.
