Kildare North 'one of the hardest places in Ireland in which to get a GP'

A Kildare North TD has told the Dáil that the north of the county “is one of the hardest places in Ireland in which to get a GP.”

Deputy Joe Neville (FG) was speaking when 'Ceisteanna ar Pholasaí nó ar Reachtaíocht - Questions on Policy or Legislation' came before the House on Wednesday, April 15 last.

Deputy Neville said: “I note the Minister is here. As the House knows, there is an urgent need to address the issue of GP access across Ireland.

“Last night, I spoke on the Critical Infrastructure Bill. We need to view GP care as critical infrastructure in its way and incentivise its creation and extension.

“I see this in my area of Kildare North, which is one of the hardest places in Ireland in which to get a GP, where people move into the county from other areas and are stuck using the GP from those areas before they can access new ones in north Kildare.

“I have met doctors in my constituency who want to extend their practices and others who want to set up new practices, but we need to make it financially feasible.”

Deputy Neville called on the government to put in place a refundable tax credit in the upcoming budget to go towards set-up costs or extension costs for premises, medical equipment and digital systems “to assist in setting up and extending GP services.”

Responding to Deputy Neville, Minister for Health, Deputy Jennifer Carroll MacNeill stated that the State currently supports GP practices “to the tune of approximately €1bn per year.”

“However”, she conceded, “we need more.”

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Deputy MacNeill told Deputy Neville that in his area of North Kildare – where there has been “particularly concentrated population growth at quick pace” - more GP practices are needed.

The Minister said she will discuss the idea of a refundable tax credit with the Tánaiste and Minister for Finance.

She added: “We need to look at every creative way to expand GP care. We are trying to recruit GPs to the HSE, but the State and private GP practices have a direct relationship - an important symbiosis - and we need to look at every lever we can use to increase GP capacity, either by extending or setting up new practices.

“I will discuss the Deputy's suggestion of a refundable tax credit with the Tánaiste and Minister for Finance for the upcoming budget.”