Health Minister James Reilly has said he is planning to introduce free GP care by 2016, probably starting with free care for the under fives.

He said today it could cost the Exchequer €40 million to introduce free GP visits for all under fives. However, the Minister said the Government had not yet made a final decision on how free GP care would be implemented.

Chair of the IMO's GP group Dr Ray Walley said the Ministers’ approach to this issue was 'appalling'. 

"Over recent weeks Minister Reilly and Minister White have repeatedly raised hopes of a dramatic extension of free GP care for young people yet neither has made any attempt to engage with the GPs who they expect to provide this service."  

Dr Walley claimed the Minister was not serious about the free GP care policy.

The Government had initially promised to introduce free GP care by 2015 on a phased basis, but previous plans to phase the scheme in initially on the basis of illness status were dropped due to legal difficulties.

Speaking on the Today with Sean O'Rourke programme on RTE, Dr Reilly also said his target of having nobody waiting over a year for an outpatient appointment by the year would be met, or nearly met.

There are currently nearly 88,000 patients waiting over a year for an outpatient appointment.

Asked about his future as Minister, Dr Reilly said a cabinet reshuffle was a matter for the Taoiseach, and he had not taken on the job of Health Minister to be popular.