Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 23 January 2024
574. Deputy Fergus O'Dowd asked the Minister for Health to provide on update on the Programme for Government commitment to further support the nursing homes support scheme (the fair deal) to provide assistance when staying at home may no longer be an option, since the establishment of the Government; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2458/24]
View answerFair Deal was designed to protect and support vulnerable older people, to ensure equal access to nursing home care based on what they could afford. This gives certainty to people and families.
Government funding for Fair Deal is to support vulnerable older people at a time in their lives where full-time care is essential.
This Government will continue to prioritise the best interests of nursing home residents to ensure that their welfare, care and well-being is ensured whilst simultaneously ensuring that nursing home care is accessible and affordable for everyone. It is vitally important that people are cared for in the most appropriate settings. This remains my number one priority.
In 2019, the Nursing Homes Support Scheme funding (NHSS) budget was €985.8m. Year-on-year the NHSS budget has increased: in 2023 I secured a funding increase of €40 million for the NHSS. An additional €45.6 million has been allocated to support nursing homes in Budget 2024, including a new €10 million fund to support private and voluntary nursing homes with HIQA compliance.
Overall, €1.4 billion of the total Health Budget was allocated last year to support over 22,700 people under Fair Deal. This will increase to nearly €1.5 billion for 2023, and I am cognisant that the budget must support all residents under Fair Deal for the full calendar year. This funding is allowing an increase in rates by the National Treatment Purchase Fund (NTPF) of 6% on average per negotiation of Deeds. The NHSS now caters for over 23,000 residents.
It is also recognised that the duration of contracts have shortened and that this increase in funding will go toward continuing to help nursing homes with inflationary costs in 2024.
The provision of free PPE and oxygen to private nursing homes continues, as of May 2023 this has cost approximately €77 million.
The COVID-19 Temporary Assistance Payment Scheme (TAPS) was established in April 2020 in response to a public health emergency to provide support to private and voluntary nursing homes to mitigate and respond to the impacts of COVID-19. The core concept of the scheme when it was established was that the State would provide additional funding to those nursing homes that require it to contribute towards costs associated with COVID-19 preparedness, mitigation and outbreak management.
Over €151 million has been claimed by nursing homes under the Temporary Assistance Payment Scheme (TAPS) since its introduction. The Outbreak Assistance element of the scheme was extended, with a gradual reduction of the threshold for maximum monthly claim amounts applying to claims from 01 March 2023. The scheme ceased at the end of April 2023. The approach taken by the Department of Health fully considered the changed situation with regard to COVID-19 in Ireland, and the inherently temporary nature of the scheme.
The Government is conscious of the financial challenges faced by the nursing home sector, especially smaller and voluntary nursing homes that may not have access to the same economies of scale as larger homes or groups.
To that end the Government has provided substantial support to the private and voluntary nursing home sector over the pandemic. A €10 million scheme (TIPS) was established in 2022 to support private and voluntary nursing homes with increases in energy costs, covering 75% of year-on-year cost increases up to a monthly cap of €5,250 per nursing home, over the period of July-December 2022. This scheme was extended for a second time to the end of June 2023.
As of 31 January 2024, €8,469,533.80 has been claimed by 366 nursing homes under the scheme. The scheme ran from 1 July 2022 to 30 June 2023.
The Department of Health continues to engage with the National Treatment Purchase Fund on further measures to support the sector.
