Richard Boyd Barrett urges opening private hospitals in health crisis

Richard Boyd Barrett spoke about the public health crisis, urging immediate measures to expand capacity and remove barriers to following public health advice. He said private hospital capacity should be made available, financial obstacles to self-isolation removed, and the DAW should be open to proposals from all sides.

Focus on public health briefings

He said public health officials need to concentrate on addressing the crisis rather than spend unnecessary time at committee meetings and welcomed the Taoiseach's comments about briefings. He also argued there must be provision for parties and groups to put forward proposals in the DAW that can be facilitated if necessary.

Concerns about a two-tier system

He insisted there should be no two-tier system operating in the health service when trying to identify extra capacity - ICU capacity, bed capacity and isolation units must be considered without creating different tiers of access.

Use of private hospital capacity

He called for private hospital capacity that might be useful for addressing the crisis or preparing for it to be immediately made available to support health services.

Removing barriers to compliance

He urged that any financial obstacles or other impediments that prevent individuals from following HSE and public health advice on self-isolation must be removed immediately so there is no impediment to people doing what the HSE and public health officials are telling them to do.

Parliamentary proposals and legislation

He said if motions or legislation are required in the DAW, the government should be open to proposals from all sides of the House and should facilitate such proposals next week.