THE STATE could face a potential liability of €500 million relating to legal claims from people infected by the MRSA hospital superbug, the State Claims Agency has said.
The agency estimated that if there were "an adverse court finding" in a claim for damages in an MRSA case, the State could face up to 1,500 claims, where the liabilities, including legal costs, could reach €500 million.
Ciarán Breen, director of the agency, told the Dáil Committee of Public Accounts that it was handling "a relatively small number" of MRSA legal cases, but that it was aware of one legal firm that was "building up" a class action-type lawsuit on MRSA.
Mr Breen said the claims agency was handling about 100 claims relating to the hospital bug.
The agency, which manages personal injury claims taken against government ministers, hospitals and other State authorities, is dealing with about 4,500 general claims, which have potential liabilities of €550 million.
The agency has €565 million in reserve from which it can fund legal actions taken against the State and pay damages. Mr Breen said that €449 million of this was earmarked for "clinical claims".
Dr Michael Somers, chief executive of the National Treasury Management Agency, which has responsibility for the claims agency, said that its "most significant challenge arises in dealing with the number and value of medical claims". He later added that MRSA infections was "one issue that is going to come up".
The agency had a "risk- management role, advising the State authorities on how to minimise their claims exposures".
Dr Somers said there had been a drop of 80 per cent in the number of employers and public liability claims, but that medical claims against the agency were rising.
In response to a question from committee chairman, Fine Gael TD Bernard Allen, Mr Breen said each MRSA claim would be "a multiple" of the €65,000 average awarded to abuse victims by the Residential Institutions Redress Board.
Based on the figures provided by Mr Breen, each claim could cost the State €333,000, including legal costs.
Dr Somers said the State Claims Agency dealt with court cases where there was "legal confrontation", while the awards to institutional abuse victims had been made outside the courts process.
The number of MRSA cases in 53 Irish hospitals fell to 526 in 2007 from 572 the previous year.
MRSA is a strain of a bacterium that has become resistant to treatment with antibiotics.
The bacterium, Staphylococcus aureus, is often found on the skin of healthy individuals. It is estimated that 25-30 per cent of people have the bug living harmlessly on their skin.
Problems can occur when it gets under the surface, through a cut or graze.