Fianna Fáil TD for Cork North West Michael Moynihan says the National Treatment Purchase Fund must be fully utilised so that the shockingly high waiting lists for appointments and procedures can be reduced.
Deputy Moynihan says he has seen an increase in the number of people coming to him who have been waiting for an appointment for more than 18 months.
“The National Treatment Purchase Fund has played a huge role in reducing long waiting lists in our health service. It was introduced by Micheál Martin in 2002 and over the next eight years, it cut waiting times, particularly for routine procedures”, said Deputy Moynihan.
“Unfortunately Fine Gael scrapped the scheme when it came into government. Since then, we have seen a huge increase in in and outpatient waiting list, with almost one million people in this country waiting months, and in many cases, years for an appointment.
“Fianna Fáil secured the re-establishment of the NTPF as part of the Confidence & Supply Arrangement in 2016 and ensured that funding was increased in 2018 and 2019. Despite this, problems still remain. I am regularly dealing with cases whereby people are waiting over two years to see a consultant.
“We know that the NTPF works – the inpatient day case list has fallen from a high of over 86,000 in 2017 to just over 70,000 earlier this year. We need to fully utilise this successful programme and continue to invest in it. The current waiting times are totally unacceptable and are undoubtedly having an impact on outcomes”.
