The Health Service Executive has issued a memo to senior managers outlining an extension of its recruitment freeze.
In the memo, seen by RTÉ News, CEO Bernard Gloster said that the organisation had to control costs as its funding, while quite high, is "not adequate for all current costs".
There will be a freeze on additional agency staffing and non-consultant hospital doctors (formerly known as junior doctors).
Other impacted areas include patient and client care services, which includes healthcare assistants and home help.
The grades exempted from this freeze are approved consulting posts and GP training posts, nursing and midwifery posts, dentists and orthodontists for public service schools and emergency services, health and social care professionals and the National Ambulance Service pre hospital care.
Mr Gloster added that there will be no further recruitment in 2024, except for around 2,000 posts that have been already committed to.
"This means also that previous approved posts in principle which cannot at this time be funded (circa 7000) will be removed from the profile", he said.
The instruction issued today takes effect immediately.
Last week, the HSE notified top managers that there is to be a freeze on filling certain new and replacement manager posts due to cost overruns.
On Wednesday, Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly signalled that there would be an extension of that freeze to include grades where recruitment targets had already been met.
This afternoon, Sinn Féin Health spokesperson David Cullinane said the expanded recruitment freeze will have a direct impact on patient care.
"This recruitment freeze on non training NCHDs, patient and client support services and some Health Care Assistant grades is a disaster for our health services," he said.
'Shocked and appalled'
The Irish Medical Organisation said it is "shocked and appalled" at the recruitment freeze, a decision which "will inevitably impact negatively on patient care".
Dr Rachel McNamara, Chair of the IMO NCHD (non-consultant hospital doctors) Committee, said: "This recruitment freeze flies in the face of safe staffing levels.
"It will add to the chaos in a system which already does not have enough doctors to deliver safe patient care, where many teams across the country are not fully staffed and where NCHDs are still working illegal and unsafe hours.
"It is astounding that this decision could be made at this point in time. Even in the depths of austerity there was no recruitment freeze on medical professionals as it was recognised that delivery of services had to be prioritised.
"It is all the more ironic that swingeing cuts to staff and budgets, imposed during austerity, is what damaged the health service for over a decade and we are now repeating the same mistakes."
SIPTU has said that it is seeking an urgent meeting with the HSE.
The move will impact a number of grades represented by the union including healthcare assistants, home helps, porters, catering assistants, chefs and security personnel.
SIPTU said the freeze would also affect agency staff, who have traditionally been used to fill vacant posts, maternity leave or long-term sick leave within the healthcare workforce.
"What is most alarming about this decision is that we are fast approaching the difficult winter period," said Kevin Figgis, SIPTU Divisional Organiser.
"Services already struggle to contain the pressures which invariably arise."
"Our members will now face an impossible situation if a recruitment freeze prohibits the refilling of a vacant patient-facing post within the acute setting or community healthcare," Mr Figgis said.
