75% of HIV cases in Ireland are reported to be among migrants who arrived with the infection. While the rate of transmission within the resident Irish population has been declining, the prevalence of HIV within the migrant population has risen sharply since 2021.
At the same time, according to HSE data, almost 100% of asylum seekers receive a medical card, adding further pressure to what is arguably the most overstretched healthcare system in the history of the State. Nearly one million people are now on healthcare waiting lists, while patients continue to suffer - and in some cases die - because the system lacks the capacity to treat them in a timely manner. An analysis of HSE data found that almost 1,300 patients died during a winter period as a result of delayed hospital admissions from emergency departments. For something as routine as a colonoscopy, a patient on the public waiting list can face a wait of more than a year before being seen.
Yet despite these realities, Ireland's borders remain open, and the Taoiseach has recently added a further 22 countries to the visa-free entry system. At a time when public services are struggling to cope with existing demand, many people are questioning the wisdom of policies that continue to increase pressure on already stretched resources.
When healthcare waiting lists approach one million people, when patients are dying while waiting for treatment, and when basic diagnostic procedures require waits measured in years rather than months, it is reasonable to ask whether those responsible for policymaking fully grasp the scale of the crisis. Looking at the condition of the country today, one is left wondering whether this level of dysfunction is simply incompetence or whether maintaining the status quo has become an objective in itself.