The Social Democrats today held an event in Cork to set out the party\u2019s vision for healthcare.<\/p>\n
Cllr P\u00e1draig Rice, who is running for the party in Cork South-Central, said:<\/p>\n
\u201cWe need a healthcare system that is based on need and not ability to pay. When you are sick you shouldn\u2019t have to pay \u20ac60 to see a GP, face long waiting lists or find yourself or a loved one on a hospital trolly.<\/p>\n
\u201cHealthcare should be accessible, reliable and free at the point of need. This is the norm across Europe, but it\u2019s far from the reality in Ireland.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt the moment, over 85,000 people are on hospital waiting lists in Cork. People are left waiting far too long. This has to change.<\/p>\n
\u201cLast month, more than 1,400 patients were treated on trolleys at Cork hospitals. Of these, 1,126 of them were at CUH, making it the second most overcrowded hospital in Ireland.<\/p>\n
\u201cFixing the healthcare system is a top priority for me and for the Social Democrats.\u201d<\/p>\n
Health spokesperson Roisin Shortall said:<\/p>\n
\u201cThe full implementation of Sl\u00e1intecare in the term of the next government is a redline for us in any future government.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Social Democrats led the way to cross-party agreement on universal health, based on need and not ability to pay, but its implementation has been far too slow.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Social Democrats are calling on all political parties to commit to the full implementation of Slaintecare within the next five years and pre-commit the necessary funding at each budget.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe long waiting lists and inequality in our health service are down to political choices, which have favoured vested interest over the public interest. We must change this and realise the full potential of Sl\u00e1intecare by committing to a much more urgent and ambitious approach.<\/p>\n
\u201cHealthcare is a right. We must bring our system into line with the kind of accessible healthcare available in other European countries.\u201d<\/p>\n
November 15, 2024<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The Social Democrats today held an event in Cork to set out the party\u2019s vision for healthcare. Cllr P\u00e1draig Rice, who is running for the party in Cork South-Central, said: \u201cWe need a healthcare system that is based on need and not ability to pay. When you are sick you shouldn\u2019t have to pay \u20ac60 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":9480,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[11,642,7,264],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9479","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-health","category-padraig-rice","category-press-release","category-roisin-shortall"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n