Renewed focus on Fair Deal scheme vital to ease hospital pressure - Mayo TD

IT'S time for renewed focus to be given to the Fair Deal scheme and its efficient and optimum delivery if hospital pressures are to be alleviated, says Deputy Michael Ring.

The Nursing Home Support ‘Fair Deal’ Scheme currently supports over 22,500 residents in approximately 550 nursing homes across the state.

The scheme, which has been broadly successful, he said, has enabled over a quarter of a million residents to be supported and provided with nursing home care over the past 10 years.

During that same time period, total payments in respect of clients supported through the scheme were in excess of €8 million, while the average payment made per client was €30,375.

Said Deputy Ring: “The Fair Deal scheme has been a success and given a lifeline to hundreds of thousands of families around the country, ensuring loved family members are in a position to be provided with care outside of their own home, when required.

“The cost of residential care to the State was approximately €1.4 billion in 2021, including contributions from residents. Private nursing homes received nearly €1 billion of this funding, almost 70%, including contributions from residents.

“The recently passed Nursing Home Support Scheme Act means that farms and small businesses are now treated as if they are private homes, which can be taken into consideration when calculating the contribution a person has made under the Fair Deal Scheme. This, I know, was a welcome step for prospective applicants to the scheme.

“I also acknowledge that applicants now face a four-week time to ascertain their acceptance onto the scheme, which is a vast improvement on delays of up to 12 weeks by previous applicants.

“However, nursing homes have reported difficulties meeting rising costs with regard to heating, electricity, food and staffing. Substantial support has been provided to the private and voluntary nursing home sector with over €145 million in funding delivered through the Temporary Assistance Payment Scheme (TAPS)

“Given the extreme pressures being experienced by hospitals currently, community healthcare delivered in our nursing homes is a huge resource. The continuous provision and development of the Fair Deal scheme for our most vulnerable elderly citizens is vitally important and I would encourage all stakeholders to continue to work closely together to develop new pathways for the scheme’s base to be broadened and strengthened.”