Alcohol associated illness cost Irish hospitals more than €800 million in a five-year period and accounted for almost 9 per cent of all hospital bed days, far greater than previously thought, new research has found.

The Irish study found that alcohol consumption accounted for almost 2.9 million bed days between 2000 and 2004.

The net in-patient costs due to the negative effects of alcohol amounted to €805,158,217, equivalent to 15 per cent of the total health budget for the five-year study period.

Ninety-six per cent of the bed days related to chronic conditions associated with alcohol, while the remaining 4 per cent related to acute conditions.....