IMO’s pre-Budget submission launched today (Wednesday)

 

• Calls for establishment of cross-departmental group to tackle health inequality, and urgent investment in our public health system to ensure timely access to care

 

• Calls on Government to support the reconstruction of the health service in Gaza with dedicated funding

 

Wednesday October 1, 2025. The Irish Medical Organisation (IMO) has called for a whole of Government response to the “chronic problem” of health inequality in Ireland, warning of the correlation between a person’s economic and social background and their health outcomes.

 

The IMO launched its pre-Budget submission today (Wednesday) in Dublin (see editors’ note below for summary of recommendations).

 

It said that the establishment of a cross-departmental group was critically important to address the fact that people from deprived areas have far worse health outcomes that those from affluent areas, a chronic problem driven by a range of social and economic factors and which is exacerbated by access to healthcare.

 

It added that those living in poverty are disproportionately affected by this shortfall. Over half the population who cannot afford private health insurance and rely on the public health system continue to endure long waiting times to access hospital care, while 5% of the population report unmet medical need because of waiting lists.

 

Capacity across the health system has failed to keep up with the needs of a growing and ageing population with the numbers of hospital beds, as well as hospital and GP specialists, all falling far below recommended norms.

 

The IMO said urgent investment is needed across the health system with resources allocated on the basis of population need.

 

Other recommendations the IMO has called for include:

Increase the number of new inpatient beds from 3,438 to 5,000 under the ‘Acute Hospital Bed Capacity Expansion Plan 2024-2031’ and publish a detailed plan laying out the costs timeline and staffing for the delivery of new beds.

Develop and fund a comprehensive medical workforce plan with actions laid out to increase the number of consultants and training posts in line with workforce requirements.

Introduce targeted supports, grants and tax incentives to help GPs establish and sustain GP practices; and improve GP services particularly in areas of deprivation.

Publish and resource an investment plan to fully digitalise the health service over the next 5 years.

Support the reconstruction of the health service for the population of Gaza with dedicated funding.

Speaking today, Dr Anne Dee, President of the IMO and a public health consultant, said: “A person’s health outcomes are based on a range of social and economic factors, with poverty one of the key contributors to poor health. Health inequality is a chronic problem in Ireland, and requires an urgent and significant response from the Government to ensure that children have the best start in life and those in greatest need receive optimal public healthcare.”

 

She added: “Successive governments have failed to sufficiently invest in both bed capacity and our medical workforce, resulting in year-round trolley and waiting list crises as we look to cater for a growing and ageing population with increasingly complex needs. The Government cannot continue to do the bare minimum when it comes to meeting that urgent demand.”

 

She said that funding for the healthcare system in Gaza also needed to be set aside. “The humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza has had a number of appalling effects, not least the collapse of its healthcare system. The Government must set aside funding to help reconstruct that healthcare system.”