New legislation that would see catastrophically injured people receiving annual payments instead of a lump sum, has been proposed.

Under the current system, people who suffer catastrophic injuries, for example as a result of medical negligence, receive the cost of future care in the form of a lump sum.

However these legislative proposals, which have been published by the Minister for Justice, Frances Fitzgerald, will introduce a new model of Periodic Payment Order, which means that a court could decide to award catastrophically injured people index-linked annual payments instead of a lump sum.

According to Minister Fitzgerald, these proposals ‘aim to give much-needed financial security to those who have been catastrophically injured and who require long-term care'.

"They will benefit people injured through accidents or through medical negligence, many of them children. The person will have certainty that he or she will receive an index-linked annual payment to cover care and medical costs. This will remove the fear of running out of money, particularly if costs are higher than anticipated at the time of the award," she explained.

She said that she has worked closely with other ministers, especially the Minister for Finance, to put these proposals together and she is ‘confident' that they will support injured people ‘without imposing undue liabilities on insurance companies or on other private defendants'.

"These proposals are also part of a broader package of reforms aimed at improving the experience of those who are seeking redress in respect of medical negligence. The Minister for Health, Leo Varadkar, is also developing legislative measures on open disclosure aimed at ensuring that patients and their families can find out much more quickly why something went wrong," Minister Fitzgerald noted.

The proposals, which come under the Civil Liability (Amendment) Bill, are being forwarded to the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Quality for pre-legislative scrutiny.

"That will provide an opportunity for further consultations with stakeholders and I look forward to receiving the Committee's report as soon as possible so that we can aim for enactment of the new legislation this year," Minister Fitzgerald added.