HEALTH Minister Mike Nesbitt has declared he wants to work “at pace” to reinstate the former cross border health scheme to help bring down waiting lists.
Last week the ‘Herald reported how the Minister for Health in the South had said she saw cross-border cooperation on healthcare as being of ‘utmost importance’ and she had met with Minister Nesbitt in February to discuss “accessibility for all on the island of Ireland.”
Now, Minister Nesbitt has said he is committed to bringing back the cross-border healthcare initiative, which closed in 2022 due to funding issues, on this side of the border.
Speaking in the Assembly last week, he said, “There is £215 million broken into three pots of money – £85 million for red flag cancer and urgent, then £80 million which is to stop the waiting lists growing any larger effectively. That is £165 million of the £215 million.
“That is coming out of my budget, it is being ring-fenced by the Executive.
“Tackling waiting lists is an Executive priority, I have no difficulty with that because I agree with it.
“And then I am getting another £50 million in June monitoring if I can provide the right plan and I accept I need to be able to justify that spend.”
Fermanagh MLA Áine Murphy welcomed the announcement.
“To support our health service, we must explore all available options to ensure patients receive the care they need. This scheme is one that we should look to build upon,” she said.
Ms Murphy added, “This scheme previously enabled many patients on long waiting lists to access vital procedures—particularly knee and hip operations—which not only reduced waiting times but significantly improved quality of life for those individuals.”
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