Relatives of deceased persons who were illegally charged for nursing home care more than six years ago will not be refunded if the Government accepts a recommendation from Minister for Health Ms Harney.
The Minister said yesterday she would be recommending to Government that the statute of limitation be applied in such cases.
"In relation to estates where the beneficiaries would be relatives or maybe people that aren't related at all, I think it would be reasonable in those circumstances to apply the statute of limitations," she said.
She added that she would bring this recommendation to a Cabinet meeting next Wednesday.
Ms Harney indicated that everybody still alive who was illegally charged for nursing home care would get the money back that they paid "plus an element of interest".
It will probably take a week or so before a final decision on the shape of the compensation scheme is reached, the Minister added.
The repayments arise out of a decision by the State to charge elderly people for nursing home care since the mid-70s even though there was no legal basis for the charges.
Legal advice is now being sought on whether medical card patients who were cared for in private nursing homes may also be entitled to refunds.