Consultant cardiologist ‘Dr Crochan O’Sullivan’ stated that the private hospital contract made last month is “a bad deal for tax payers”.
The agreement implied that private hospital facilities would be used to treat public patients during the Covid-19 crisis over a three-month period.
This deal is costing tax payers approximately €115 million a month but according to Leo Varadkar “it may be right or it may be wrong”.
Varadkar added that “It is an accurate estimate but it is not necessarily what the actual cost will be because we will not know that until the end, when the costs are calculated”.
Minister for Health ‘Simon Harris’ stated that 3,400 patients were treated in private hospitals in April which equates to €24,000 per patient, per episode.
Varadkar stated that the agreement would be done on a not-for-profit basis, it would however, cover the costs of the private hospitals.