Health care system in Ireland - Statistics & Facts

The health care system in Ireland is considered to be a comprehensive system with a public health service funded by the government and an expanding private health care service. Individuals who are resident in Ireland for at least one year are entitled to receive health care through the public health care system managed by the Health Service Executive (HSE). Ireland’s expenditure on health care as a share of GDP amounted to 6.1 percent in 2021. The public health care system is heavily funded by the Irish Government, with the deficit paid through voluntary health care payments and household spending. A large proportion of expenditure goes towards hospitals and ambulatory health care providers. When looking at expenditure by health care function, more than half of current spending was spent on curative and rehabilitative care.

Medical Card & GP Visit Card

Although the public healthcare system is largely financed by the Irish Government, individuals are required to pay fees for health care services such as visiting a general practitioner (GP), which costs 40 to 70 euros. Attending an accident and emergency department without a referral will cost around 100 euros, while hospital charges are 80 euros per day (with a maximum of 800 euros per year). To enable people who otherwise cannot afford to pay for healthcare treatment a Medical Card system was introduced, where eligibility is predominantly based on income. This allows individuals to access a range of health services free of charge. The number of individuals entitled to a Medical Card has been decreasing since 2012. A subsequent system allows individuals and families, who earn too much to qualify for the medical card but still under a certain threshold, to receive a GP Visit Card providing free visits to their GP. Another system in place, which all residents may apply for, is the Drugs Payment Scheme, which caps the amount that an individual or family has to pay per month for approved prescribed medication at 80 euros.

Hospital overcrowding

The majority of hospitals in Ireland are operated directly by the HSE, however many are run under a voluntary basis by public funding, as a teaching hospital, in conjunction with a religious ethos or as private hospitals. The number of hospitals in operation in Ireland has decreased in recent years resulting in a decreasing number of hospital beds available. This has led to a ‘"trolley crisis" in Ireland, characterized by a record number of patients waiting for a hospital bed on a trolley. The post-covid surge in numbers is most likely driven by postponed care during the pandemic and the aging population. Health professionals have expressed concerns about the safety of patients and medical personnel as a result of hospitals operating at full capacity. How Ireland’s health system will cope with this ongoing challenging situation remains to be seen.
This text provides general information. Statista assumes no liability for the information given being complete or correct. Due to varying update cycles, statistics can display more up-to-date data than referenced in the text.
Published by Preeti Vankar, Jan 10, 2024

Key insights

Current healthcare expenditure in Ireland
28.6bn EUR
Percentage of population with a medical card
30.8%
COVID-related health care expenditure in 2020
2.4bn EUR
Get more insights

Editor’s Picks Current statistics on this topic

Total expenditure on health as a share of gross domestic product (GDP) in Ireland from 1980 to 2022

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Healthcare expenditure as a share of GDP in Ireland 1980-2022

Percentage of population taking part in the drugs payment scheme in Ireland from 2006 to 2021

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Individuals taking part in the drugs payment scheme in Ireland 2006-2021

Value of capital public health expenditure on mental health in Ireland from 2010 to 2021 (in million euros)

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Capital expenditure on mental health in Ireland 2010-2021

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