Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 4 December 2025
430. Deputy Jen Cummins asked the Minister for Health her plans to cover newer and more effective MS medications that are not yet included in the reimbursement lists to make it easier for patients with MS on lower incomes to access more effective treatments. [68569/25]
View answer431. Deputy Jen Cummins asked the Minister for Health her plans to review the inclusion of all clinically proven MS medications under both the drug payment scheme and the medical card. [68570/25]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 430 and 431 together.
The State recognises the importance of timely access to new and innovative treatments for patients with Multiple Sclerosis (MS).
The Programme for Government contains a suite of measures on medicines which my officials will seek to progress over the lifetime of this government.
Supported by 158 million euros of funding, in the last four years, the State has delivered access to 243 new medicines. One hundred and one (101) of these were for cancer and 67 of these were for rare diseases. Budget 2026 allocated €30 million for new drugs from €217 million in additional funding for medicines.
It should be noted that once new medicines are approved the full cost of providing them as their uptake increases can reach multiples of their initial cost.
The OECD reports that Ireland has the second highest rate of state coverage of pharmaceutical expenditure in Europe.
The HSE has statutory responsibility for medicine pricing and reimbursement decisions, under the Health (Pricing and Supply of Medical Goods) Act 2013. Reimbursement is for licenced indications which have been granted marketing authorisation by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) or the Health Products Regulatory Authority (HPRA).
Once a company responsible for the commercialisation of a new medicine receives marketing authorisation, it can apply for reimbursement in the country (or countries) of its choice. The timing of company applications for new medicine reimbursement in different countries can vary for several reasons, not least the available market share in each country.
Ireland, by virtue of its size and market share, may not always be prioritised by a company in the first stages of marketing a new product.
Ireland is open for business and actively encourages all Marketing Authorisation holders of new medicines to apply for pricing and reimbursement in Ireland as soon as marketing authorisation is granted by the European Medicines Agency.
The Government has introduced a suite of new measures to enhance capacity in the HSE’s pricing and reimbursement system including 34 additional staff and a medicines application tracker to increase transparency of the process.
Access to medicines requires industry and the State to work together, through timely assessment, and reasonable pricing with fully completed HTAs (Health Technology Assessments) which will ultimately benefit patients.
