The Minister for Health, Simon Harris has said that the Government is more determined than ever to invest and improve the country’s healthcare system.
Mr Harris wo made his comments whilst speaking at the annual conference of the Irish Hospital Consultants Association in Limerick this weekend also claimed that next week’s Budget will do more than just show how committed the Government and his department is to the issue.
The Health Minister who also outlined plans to deal with the overcrowding crisis at the nations hospitals said the healthcare system in Ireland will finally get the adequate amount of funding after spending “a lost decade”without the right resources.
He also responded to recent reports that stated there were currently over 678,000 people on waiting lists across the country, by saying that more detailed and accurate waiting lists were needed in order to clarify the ongoing situation.
Minister Harris also claimed that the recently published figures weren’t entirely accurate and didn’t highlight the whole scale of the situation citing the fact that over 425,000 patients did not attend outpatient appointments when they were called upon.
He also added that his department will publish a bed capacity report at the end of the year.