Thirty complaints of GPs charging for Covid consultations
THE HSE said it has received 30 complaints about GPs charging for Covid-19 consultations which should be free.
The complaints were lodged between March last year and February 7 this year.
A spokeswoman said these related mostly to private or out-of-hours GPs.
“Complainants were advised to raise it directly with the GP,” she said.
None of the complaints related to medical card patients.
An agreement was made between the HSE and GPs not to charge patients and a set fee is paid through the HSE.
Meanwhile, Covid-19 claimed the lives of more than 1,440 people since the beginning of the year as the third wave of the pandemic surged.
Another 68 deaths were reported last night, 50 of whom died in February with the other fatalities in January and December.
However, the number of daily cases of the virus fell to 556, one of the lowest daily totals recorded since early December, although levels are expected to rise again later this week.
Monaghan, Carlow, Waterford and Wexford are the worst-hit counties with the 14-day incidence lowest in Roscommon, Kerry and Kilkenny.
There are more signs of pressure easing on hospitals, although the number of Covid-19 patients being treated remains high.
Numbers in hospital with Covid-19 fell to 1,104 with 182 seriously ill patients in intensive care.
It comes as a new study of patients in 12 countries, including Ireland, has revealed the extent to which underlying frailty increases the risk of death in Covid-19 patients. The research from the University of Birmingham found that very severely frail individuals with Covid-19 were three times more likely to die than those who were not frail, even taking into account their age.
They also found that those with severe frailty who survived the virus were seven times more likely to need increased care out of hospital.
The Geriatric Medicine Research Collaborative (GeMRC) – the group of experts behind the study – are now calling for improved global public health policy after their research showed that frailty, independently of older age, increases the risk of death from Covid-19.
Frailty is a state where the body becomes more vulnerable to the effects of illness. It is identified by clinicians using a holistic assessment that considers how much support the person needs from others in their daily living before becoming unwell – not just their medical problems.
The risk of frailty increases as we get older, but it can develop at different ages. Senior author Dr Carly Welch, clinical research fellow in geriatric medicine at the University of Birmingham’s Institute of Inflammation and Ageing and chair and co-founder of the GeMRC, said: “It was identified very early in the pandemic that older age was a significant risk factor for a higher chance of death with Covid-19.
“However, not all older people are the same, we all age differently – some people can live well into their 90s without developing frailty, and it can develop even without the presence of other long-term conditions.
“Our findings are important as we have been able to demonstrate that not only older age but also frailty, independently from one another, increase the risk of death from Covid-19 and also a subsequent increased need in care for survivors.”
Dr Daisy Wilson, clinical research fellow, said: “We have evidence those most at risk from Covid-19 are those who are older, or living with frailty, or have underlying health conditions.”