The national bill increased by over €9 million.
The amount of money spent on agency staff in acute public hospitals increased by over €9 million last year.
The bill at the three Midlands Regional Hospitals came to €30 million.
According to details released under the Freedom of Information Act, more than €161.1 million was spent on agency staff in the HSE’s acute hospitals last year.
It’s a 6 per cent increase on the €151.8 million spent in 2018.
Medical and dental staff accounted for nearly €67 million of last year’s total, while nurses made up almost €31 million and €11.5 million was spent on paramedics.
A total of €16.1 million was spent on agency staff at University Hospital Limerick, while nearly €11 million was spent in both Naas and Portlaoise hospitals.
The agency bill for Mullingar hospital came to nearly €10 million, while in Tullamore it was €9.3 million.
The HSE says 94% of its pay budget each year is spent on directly employed staff, and reducing agency and overtime costs continues to be a particular focus.
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