HSE has paid out €3.3bn in compensation in past decade

Total of €510m was transferred to the State Claims Agency last year

More than €3.3bn has been spent on HSE claims in the last decade, the latest figures show.

The compensation amounts each year have steadily risen, with €510m paid last year from the Health Vote fund, set up by the Department of Health to finance the HSE. This money was then paid to the State Claims Agency (SCA).

The SCA deals with personal injury claims on behalf of state bodies.

The latest figures relate to the management and settlement of health-linked claims, including those relating to medical compensation.

The number of active claims being managed by the SCA has increased by 5pc over the past five years.

Last year, a total of €510m was paid out and €530m was awarded the year before.

In 2014, the figure was €151m. However, it has risen throughout the years, coming in at €198m in 2016, €320m in 2018 and €400m in 2020.

The significant increases have been attributed to “catastrophic injury claims”, inflation and longer life expectancies.

A spokesperson for the SCA pointed to an excerpt from the organisation’s 2022 annual report.

It stated: “While the number of active claims being managed by the SCA has increased by 5pc over the last five years – from 10,658 at end-2018 to 11,204 at end-2022 – the increase in the estimated outstanding liability over the same period is much higher at 57pc.

“Catastrophic injury claims, due to their high value, are the main driver behind this increase in volume terms.

“Other factors contributing to the increase in estimated outstanding liability are the increase in claims numbers and general claims inflation; the effect of significant mass actions; the reduction in the Real Rate of Return [after taxes and inflation] which affects most clinical claims and, in relation to catastrophic injuries, increased life expectancy as a result of improved medical and pharmacological care.”

The figures were provided through parliamentary questions to Aontú leader Peadar Tóibín, who said the total amount being spent by the Government every year is “eye-watering”.

He said parliamentary questions have shown that nearly 500,000 people suffered adverse incidents in the health service in the past five years and that more than 3,000 people died as a result of those incidents.

“There is a horrendous human cost to what’s happening in the health service. There is also a shocking financial cost,” Mr Tóibín said. “There is little or no accountability for these human tragedies or this financial mess. If there is no accountability, there will be no change.

“Indeed the salaries of senior staff in the Department of Health are increasing significantly while this is happening.”

The HSE was contacted for comment.

“There is little or no accountability for these human tragedies or financial mess” Peadar Tóibín