Fianna Fáil TD for Cork North West Michael Moynihan has slammed the government for failing to deliver on promises on respite care. Despite claims that additional money was being allocated specifically for respite services, families in north Cork are finding it near impossible to secure respite hours for their loved ones.
Deputy Moynihan raised the issue once again with Minister Jim Daly in the Dáil.
“Respite services across north Cork have reached crisis levels, particularly for families with loved ones with intellectual disabilities. They have been contacting my office angry and distressed because they are unable to secure much needed respite hours. In fact, service providers are now telling families that there are no respite hours available for the rest of 2019”, said Deputy Moynihan.
“It is heart-breaking to hear some of the situations that parents are being expected to cope with.
“Workers in the sector have told me that funding for respite care is not being made available by the HSE to the regions and that the government is unable to deal with the crisis facing it. They also claim that access to care has been completely shut down to new applicants.
“I have raised this issue numerous times in the Dáil, and this time was no different. Minister Daly once again talked about the additional €10m euro investment and claimed that new respite facilities are at an advanced stage. We are now half way through 2019, and services are already under extraordinary pressure. It’s simply not good enough. Fine Gael is failing families here in north Cork”, concluded Deputy Moynihan.
