The health sector has been consistently spending more than its budgetary allocation, according to a Department of Public Expenditure report. Photograph: Getty ImagesIn a new paper comparing Irish expenditure with that in other countries, the department says that health spending in theIt says that the Republic has, at present, a relatively young population but that “health spending already more closely resembles a country with a much older population”.
It says there are opportunities and costs involved as “the over-prioritisation of health could result in constrained funding for equally valuable services provided by the State such as social welfare or educational supports”. “This poses challenges, as the increases in public expenditure to provide these public services should over the medium term be aligned to expenditure levels that can be sustained by the economy and its medium-term growth path.”
“Public expenditure as a share of overall health expenditure has also grown substantially, increasing from 71.8 per cent in 2015 to 77.4 per cent in 2022. ”