Ambulance Service

Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 17 May 2011

Tuesday, 17 May 2011

Ceisteanna (474)

Michael Creed

Ceist:

507 Deputy Michael Creed asked the Minister for Health and Children if he has quantified the extent of the use of the Public Ambulance Service for the transport of non-emergency private patients; the extent to which this exposes the public to danger in view of the lack of ambulance cover that this involves for the public; the level of remuneration secured by the Health Service Executive in respect of this transport from private health insurance companies; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11705/11]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Health and Children (Deputy James Reilly)

The HSE has advised me that from January to March 2011 the National Ambulance Service had a total of 216,571 calls for emergency and non-emergency public patient transport and 92 calls for last resort or time critical private patient transport. I have been assured by the National Ambulance Service that its priority in allocating its resources is to ensure its services are available to deal with emergency and public patient transfers.

The National Ambulance Service transports patients with private health insurance cover when requested to do so by a HSE hospital in circumstances where the hospital advises that no private ambulance company is either available or available within an acceptable timeframe. The National Ambulance Service invoices the private health insurance company for the costs incurred to it in providing the transfer and does not make any profit in respect of such transfers.