PATIENTS attending Naas hospital for day-ward procedures including chemotherapy are being asked to pay a €75 daily charge as the HSE puts on increasing pressure to collect all charges due.
While the hospital has denied demanding money “up front” from patients, the HSE has acknowledged that those attending day wards in all of its hospitals for treatments, including chemotherapy, are being actively pursued for the €75 daily charge. The health authority has stated that it has “a statutory obligation to impose the charges and collect monies due”.
The practice has been highlighted and criticised by Kildare Sinn Féin spokesperson Mark Lynch, who claimed that “failure to pay up front will mean that the hospital will not cater for patients who cannot afford to pay”.
“Demanding €75 up front from outpatients every time they go to a chemotherapy session is a disgraceful act by the HSE. While paying for chemotherapy sessions is not new, demanding cash up front is,” said Mr Lynch.” Any cancer patient who does not have a medical card or private insurance will now have to pay up large sums of money to treat their cancer, which is morally wrong.”
He said Sinn Féin was calling on Health Minister James Reilly to reverse this decision which, he said, was causing huge distress to patients and putting lives at risk. “We know that hospitals are under huge financial pressure at the moment but demanding cash up front for delivery of something as vital as chemotherapy is not any kind of solution,” he concluded.
In response, a statement from Naas General Hospital stressed that money is not demanded up front from any patient. “It has always been the case, invoices are issued within three days of discharge,” the statement added.
A notice displayed at the entrance to Naas hospital day wards now informs people that they are liable for the €75 charge, noting that those who hold medical cards are exempt.
HSE spokesperson Arlene Crean denied that pressure was being put on people to pay up front and stressed that hospitals “could use discretion” in extreme circumstances where there were issues around payment.
However, she acknowledged that the €75 daily charge for day-ward accommodation had been in place for some time. It relates to all patients attending for day ward procedures, including various tests, and not just to cancer patients.
Ms Crean commented: “The charge is dictated by government but to date, I am not aware of any cases where people have been denied treatment because they were unable to pay.” She added that in general, the procedure involved letters being sent out to those who were liable for the charge, subsequent to their treatment.
The fee is covered by health insurance and those who have medical cards are exempt from it but, with so many people having recently been forced to opt out of health insurance because of unemployment and increasing financial pressures, it seems likely that an increasing number of people will find themselves faced with paying hospital charges like the day ward fee.
Patients undergoing chemotherapy, where treatment may involve successive day-ward treatments over several months, could incur significant costs. However, the total charge is capped at €750 within any given year, a point made by both Naas Hospital and the HSE spokesperson.
The HSE response noted: “Patient charges are a statutory charge (set down by law), which have been in place for some time. There is no new charge for cancer patients. The HSE has a statutory obligation to impose the charges and to recover the monies owed to hospitals. Every charge not collected represents less money to spend on other areas of care. Cancer patients are entitled to apply for discretionary medical cards in certain circumstances.”
