Section 16 of the Health (Miscellaneous Provisions) (No.2) Act 2024 was the only part of the law which was not commenced in September 2024.

It provides for a new enforcement power for the chief inspector of social services in the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) to issue compliance notices to providers of residential care for older people and people with disabilities when they are non-complaint with Regulations.

The commencement was delayed to allow the chief inspector to undertake necessary preparatory work, which has now been completed.

Health minister Jennifer Carroll MacNeill said: “The 2024 Act introduced a number of new provisions to strengthen the regulatory framework for residential care for older people and people with disabilities.

“The commencement of section 16 enhances the tools available to the Chief Inspector to respond to non-compliance by providers and to make sure that residential centres are safe environments for everyone living there.”

Kieran O’Donnell, the minister of state for older people and housing, added: “I am pleased to announce the commencement of section 16, which will bring increased protections for individuals living in residential centres for older people and centres for people with disabilities.

“These new enforcement powers will drive improvements in the quality and safety of care for the benefit of residents, their families and the sector as a whole.”

The 2024 Act introduced a number of changes to the Health Act 2007, with minor amendments to the Nursing Homes Support Scheme Act 2009 and the Mental Health Act 2001.

The amendments to the 2007 Act were in response to key recommendations from a post-Covid expert panel report which called for the enhancement and modernisation of the regulatory framework governing nursing homes.