The HSE has been accused of "exploiting" Dublin City Council by only paying half the cost of the ambulance service, the Local Authority's Chief Executive has said.
A DCC financial report stated that €116.8 million is owed by the HSE for the provision of the ambulance service which the HSE paid €9.18 million for this year - which is the same sum paid in 2013. DCC's Head of Finances Kathy Quinn, who authored the report, explained the debt includes the cost of Covid ambulances and the annual accumulation of the difference between the cost of the service and what the HSE paid for it.
Council boss Owen Keegan said he didn't know of any health service budget that has not increased due to inflation over the past ten years and argued that the HSE wants to run the service themselves. Minister for Local Government Darragh O'Brien has been asked to find a solution to outstanding funds.
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Sinn Fein Councillor Daithi Doolan told the meeting he was "shocked" that the HSE owes the local authority so much money for Dublin Fire Brigade's ambulance service. He said: "It is necessary and we will continue to provide it.
He told Dublin Live: "We receive contributions from the other three local authorities but the big outstanding debt and I suppose others may point to other big outstanding debts owed to Dublin Council but they pale in significance when this is a Government agency headed up by the Department of Health with a Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly sitting on his hands while the Department owes us €116.8 million."
Cllr Doolan asked the Council manager Owen Keegan to agree with his calls for the Health Minister to release the funds to pay the debt. The Chief Executive said: "We got a commitment from our own Minister that the issue of the inadequate funding of the DFB emergency ambulance service that he would resolve that."
Mr Keegan added that he would be happy to withdraw the service and let the HSE provide the ambulance service which he claims has been their objective.. He said: "I'd be quite happy not to provide the service but I don't think the members here would support that.
"The HSE are getting very good value because they know we are very committed to providing that service to the people of Dublin. They have successfully exploited that over the years. The HSE would be delighted if we stopped providing the service because I think that has always been their objective to get full control of that service."
He added: "There is a huge commitment among the staff and I think it is important that we support them and we have done that and the HSE have exploited that to the hilt." Dublin Live have contacted the HSE for a comment.
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