Liz McManus
Ceist:164 Ms McManus asked the Minister for Health and Children the number of private beds in public hospitals; the average cost, in terms of State subvention, of each such bed; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14643/00]
Written Answers. - Hospital Funding.
The number of private beds in acute public hospitals is 2,528. My Department's financial allocation to public hospitals is for the totality of services provided and is not broken down between services provided to public or private patients by bed. However, public hospitals apply charges for private and semi-private beds. These charges vary according to the type of hospital providing care and a table of these charges is attached.
Because costs vary significantly from hospital to hospital, it is extremely difficult to state the level of state subsidy for each hospital. However, it is estimated that the private charges in Dublin teaching hospitals may be in the order of 50% of the average cost of such beds. The White Paper on Private Health Insurance, published in September 1999, considered the issue of the current level of charges applicable to private patients in public hospitals. It estimated that, taking account of the varying levels of costs between major tertiary and teaching hospitals and general hospitals, the estimated total annual cost of the subsidy is £35 million. The White Paper also proposed that the introduction of economic pricing of private beds would be introduced over a period of five to seven years.