'No funding available': Derry MLA criticises lack of cross-border health scheme that could've helped 4000

Mr Durkan has previously called on the Minister of Health, Mike Nesbitt to engage with his Executive colleagues to reopen the Republic of Ireland Reimbursement Scheme (RoIRS).

In a response following a recent question tabled on the issue by Mr Durkan, the Health Minister replied that a bid for funding for a replacement scheme was submitted during the 2024/25 budget setting process as part of a wider bid for £135million of additional funding to tackle waiting lists.

"It was intended,” Mr Nesbitt said, “that a new reimbursement scheme could have treated over 4,000 patients this financial year.

“Unfortunately, under the 2024/25 Budget, no additional funding was provided for tackling our waiting lists nor does the draft budget for 2025/26 provide any additional funding for waiting list reduction initiatives and the focus has to be on supporting those on cancer and time critical waiting lists.

“As such, there is no funding available at present to reinstate a cross-border reimbursement scheme.

The Foyle MLA said that it was “gutting to learn that the Executive has chosen not to support the return of a cross border healthcare scheme that would have allowed people enduring painful waits, to access treatment sooner”.

“Myself and others forewarned of the inevitable situation whereby people forced onto ever-increasing waiting lists would be forced to seek private treatment. Sadly, that fear has been realised with record numbers of patients in the North using private healthcare,” Mr Durkan said.

“Painful timeframes are proving devastating for patients. People are living in constant pain, their lives turned upside down—some unable to manage the stairs to go to bed, others struggling to sleep as the pain remains unbearable even when they do. I’ve heard of so many desperate patients who felt they had no alternative but to deplete the little savings they had or to turn towards credit unions, to pay for private surgery.

“The cross border reimbursement scheme is by no means a perfect one but it has been a vital interim solution which patients and the health system has become reliant on. It's incredibly disappointing that the Executive has rejected a funding bid that could have supported 4,000 patients—twice the number helped in the previous rollout.”

Mr Durkan claimed that this situation was “brought about by a toxic cocktail of failures by the Executive to seriously embrace cross-border healthcare opportunities, failure to drive meaningful transformation within the health system and to properly invest in services and the workforce, who are leaving in their droves to access better pay and working conditions elsewhere”.

He added that the SDLP will work to explore further opportunities for cross border healthcare beyond elective care via the Shared Island Initiative and look at ways to further enhance cross-border cooperation.

"People have worked and paid into a system all their lives with the promise of receiving healthcare ‘free at the point of use.’ They shouldn’t be forced into debt to access timely treatment.”