The Government was urged yesterday by the largest organisation representing doctors in the State to significantly increase the amount of tax on tobacco and alcohol products in this year's Budget.
The Irish Medical Organisation (IMO), in its pre-Budget submission, called for the price of a packet of 20 cigarettes to be increased by €2 and for a 20 per cent increase in the tax on all alcoholic drinks.
IMO president Dr Joe Barry said he believed both would result in a fall-off in drinking and smoking and he said whatever money was collected should be invested in the health service.
The organisation also wants:
medical card eligibility to be increased to enable a further 100,000 people to qualify for medical cards over the next three years;
ring-fenced funding for the national health strategy, the primary care strategy and the recently-published health service reform programme;
and the development of primary healthcare facilities via public-private partnerships.
The IMO said escalating costs are militating against GPs establishing practices in many regions. As a result, the GP to patient ratio in north county Dublin is 1:2,500 and the IMO believes if there were more primary care centres built through public private partnerships, it would reduce pressure on hospital accident and emergency departments.
IMO chief executive Mr George McNeice said that if the Government was considering borrowing to fund infrastructure, it should also borrow to fund a better health service.