Mother and Child Scheme - Aftermath

Aftermath

The following month a general election was called and in June 1951 a new government was formed, as a result of the election.

A derivative of the scheme was implemented subsequently by the Fianna Fáil government which returned to power as a result of the general election. This achieved legislative effect in the 1953 Health Act; this and later legislation that created the Voluntary Health Insurance Board in 1957 removed the compulsory attempts of government to reform healthcare. Thus what became called the two-tier system was born, the private and public systems existing side-by-side, later reinforced by the 1970 Health Act, which was the next significant legislative reform.