The total cost of the Covid-19 pandemic incurred by the State is estimated to be almost €30bn. The Comptroller and Auditor General has issued his report on the Accounts of the Public Services for 2021.
The report shows a breakdown of Covid-19 related costs in the year ending February 2022 is estimated at €12.4bn, the previous year the cost was €17.1bn.
The highest spending among Government departments were Social Protection, Health, Housing, Local Government and Heritage. The Department of Social Protection spent a total of €18.7bn in Covid-19 supports such as the employment wage subsidy scheme (EWSS) and the pandemic unemployment payment (PUP) schemes in the two years following the start of the pandemic in March 2020.
The Department of Health accounts show nearly half of its expenditure was on testing and tracing and vaccines - estimated at €1.2bn.