Vol. 490 No. 4
49 Mr. S. Ryan asked the Minister for Health and Children if his attention has been drawn to the fact that the current average weekly charge in nursing homes in the Dublin region is £350; his views on the adequacy of the maximum subvention of £120 payable by health boards; the proposals, if any, he has to increase subventions to a more realistic level; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10262/98]
The Health (Nursing Homes) Act, 1990 gives powers to the health boards to enforce high standards of accommodation and care in nursing homes. The Act also introduced a new system of nursing home subventions so that dependent people most in need of nursing home care would have access to such care. The scheme is intended to assist persons in meeting the costs of nursing home care but is not intended to meet the full costs involved. The Act respects in full the private or voluntary ownership of nursing homes.
Additional funding was made available by my Department in late 1997 to facilitate health boards in the implementation of nursing homes legislation, including the Nursing Homes (Subvention)(Amendment) Regulations, 1996. These regulations allow boards, inter alia, to pay an enhanced subvention in certain circumstances. I understand that as a result of this additional funding, the Eastern Health Board made available enhanced subventions to over 200 older people in private nursing home care whose financial resources had become depleted.
I am anxious that the recent improvements in the financing of the scheme be used for the optimum benefit of older people availing of private nursing home care and I have asked my Department to monitor the situation in conjunction with the Eastern Health Board. There is a commitment in the programme for Government to increase the levels of subvention and this will be considered within the context of resources available to the health services.
