TIMELINE OF THE STATE’S 50-YEAR CARE-CHARGING SCANDAL

1970

The Health Act 1970 is passed, entitling all to free long-stay care services in public institutions.

1975

A High Court judgment finds a patient had been unjustly charged. This prompts the Department of Health to consider ways of maintaining charges as an important source of income.

1976

The department makes new ministerial regulations, and issues circular to health boards telling them they can continue to charge.

1978

The Eastern Health Board provides the department with legal opinions showing that the charges are not legally sound. The department continues to advise health boards to settle out of court when individuals challenge charges. This becomes the default position for decades.

1979

The legal adviser to the Department Of Health again expresses the view that charges are not legally sound and that new legislation will be required. His advice is ignored.

1982

A department review finds there is ‘no legal basis’ for charges. No action is taken.

1987

The Fianna Fáil Government drafts a Bill which would have made charges legal. The proposed law is dropped.

1989

The Commission on Health Funding urges that the law be revised. No such change occurs.

1991

Minister for Health Mary O’Rourke announces a review of charges, which recommends new legislation to achieve legal clarity regarding charges. Nothing happens.

1994

Health Minister Brendan Howlin publishes a new health strategy which recognises the longstay charges legislation as ‘inadequate’. New legislation is promised. This does not materialise.

2001

The Ombudsman highlights how successive governments have failed to rectify the basis for illegal charges. Health Minister Micheál Martin extends free medical cards by legislation to all over-70s. Because more people are now entitled to free care – and because illegal charges continue regardless – this exacerbates the problem.

2002

The South Eastern Health Board, facing a number of cases, forwards legal advice from senior counsel to the effect that charges remain unjustifiable. A draft Bill to address the issue is prepared but

does not proceed.

2003

A Human Rights Commission report once again details the inadequate legal grounds upon which charges are being levied.

2004

Mary Harney becomes Health Minister and requests advice from the Attorney General about the validity of charges. She then quickly passes a Bill to retrospectively make the historical charges legal, thereby preventing anyone from suing for recompense. President Mary McAleese refuses to sign the Bill, which is referred to the Supreme Court.

2005

The Supreme Court rules that people who had paid unlawful charges – or their descendants – were entitled to recover monies. A report into the charging scandal, commissioned by Mary Harney, is published. The report highlights ‘systemic corporate failure within the Department of Health for almost 30 years’.

2006

The Health Repayment Scheme is established to compensate those medical card patients still living and the estates of those who had died on or after December 9, 1988. Patients forced into funding their own private care for the lack of a public place were also excluded. Hundreds of thousands of families affected are excluded by these limitations as €477million is paid out to 20,000 families.

2009

The Fair Deal Scheme – which finally put charges on a legal basis – becomes law.

2010

Hundreds of families excluded from the compensation scheme seek to sue the State. Ombudsman Emily O’Reilly publishes a damning report based on more than 1,000 complaints from those improperly charged.

2011

Faced with a potential liability of €12billion, new Health Minister James Reilly circulates a top-secret memorandum. Based on advice from Attorney General Máire Whelan, the Government, knowing it cannot win any case, adopts a confidential containment policy of secretly settling cases to prevent more claimants coming forward. The policy is successful and cases begin to dwindle.

2016

The secret strategy continues as Leo Varadkar is replaced as Health Minister by Simon Harris.

2017

Minister Harris and Junior Health Minister Helen McEntee receive a confidential update. With no new cases emerging, the containment strategy is reaffirmed. ‘The current approach is working well… litigation is being managed successfully,’ the brief reads.