Vol. 513 No. 1
429 Ms O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Health and Children the plans, if any, he has to commission a study or studies on health inflation as indicated in a report of his Department and the Committee of Public Accounts; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1213/00]
As a further step in analysing this subject my Department is reviewing the implications of the latest demographic projections produced by the Central Statistics Office in order to assess the impact of changing demography on the cost of delivering health services.
Another major area of concentration in the period ahead will be on the engagement and support of consultants to carry out a value-for-money audit of the health services, as set out in the review of An Action Programme for the Millennium published in November 1999. It is expected that this review will, inter alia, provide information on the impact of various factors contributing to health inflation over the last ten years.
I have no immediate plans to commission other studies at the present time.
