Health supports private way to increase funds

FACILITIES for private medical patients could soon expand. The Health and Social Services Department is considering increasing capacity to deal with the growth in private sector treatment.

A report from the National Audit Office has identified that Health could raise extra cash each year. One possible way is by increasing fees for States analyst work.

'What is more realistic is raising more money through private patients, whether that be those in beds or outpatients,' said Health minister Peter Roffey.

The report said that in other areas, including private medicine, charges were already the same as in other jurisdictions, or as high as was feasible.

'We cannot really put up the charges but we can increase the amount of private medicine we provide. There are now more and more people with occupational medical insurance and therefore more people asking for more private medicine.

'We are looking at where we can increase this income stream, as long as it does not impact on other patients.'

Private patients are housed in the Victoria Wing of the PEH. Deputy Roffey was unable to say how much extra cash could be raised.

'We have had a steady increase in the amount of private work carried out and it now provides a significant amount of our income. We would like therefore to have the facilities to take on the extra demand if this continued to grow.

'We would not wish to push people that way, but if they want to have it, then we would like to use that extra growth to our benefit. If the growth continues, we want to accommodate it. I would emphasise that this would not be carried out at the expense of the rest of the population.

'The money would be spent on health care for the island as a whole. None of the capital projects have been carried out for private

medicine.

'They have all been carried out for the general health service.'

Referring to the States analyst, he added: 'Most of the work carried out is done for other States departments, so if we charge at more commercial rates, while our department would get more money, we would only be taking from other States bodies like the Environment Department, Customs and the water section of the Public Services Department.

'I may be wrong and would consider it if there was, but I do not think there is much demand beyond providing the other States departments.'

Deputy Roffey said he agreed with the rest of the report.

It said that an extra '27,000 could be raised each year by increasing staff accommodation average occupancy by 5%. But it also noted that empty rooms were often just about to be filled and that a certain level had to be unoccupied for maintenance.

It added that rents for properties had to balance raising funds against recruitment and retention, although it was possible to raise '400,000 a year extra by 2008.