Written Answers Nos. 496-520
496. Deputy Martin Kenny asked the Minister for Health if Irish citizens working in the north of Ireland and living in the south of Ireland are entitled to a medical card as a frontline worker; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38869/24]
Amharc ar fhreagraEligibility for a Medical Card is primarily based on a financial assessment which is conducted by the HSE in accordance with the Health Act 1970 (as amended). The HSE assesses each medical card application on a qualifying financial threshold. This is the amount of money that an individual can earn a week and still qualify for a card. It is specific to the individual’s own financial circumstances.
The EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement concluded between the EU and the UK includes provisions relating to social security and health rights for certain categories of persons, including frontier workers. Social security and healthcare rights are also provided for by the EU-UK Withdrawal Agreement.
Under the social security provisions of the EU UK Trade & Cooperation Agreement (TCA), a frontier worker working and paying social insurance in the UK/Northern Ireland, is eligible for a non-means tested medical card if they are ordinarily resident in Ireland and return to this state daily or at least once a week.
497. Deputy Michael Lowry asked the Minister for Health the reason that linaclotide (constella® 290mg) is not covered by the drugs payment scheme or for persons who are in receipt of a medical card; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38872/24]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe HSE has statutory responsibility for decisions on pricing and reimbursement of medicines under the community drugs schemes, in accordance with the Health (Pricing and Supply of Medical Goods) Act 2013.
In line with the 2013 Act and the national framework agreed with industry, a company must submit an application to the HSE to have a new medicine added to the reimbursement list. Reimbursement is for licenced indications which have been granted market authorisation by the European Medicines Agency or the Health Products Regulatory Authority.
In making a relevant reimbursement decision, the HSE is required under the Act to have regard to a number of criteria including efficacy, the health needs of the public, cost effectiveness and potential or actual budget impact. HSE decisions on which medicines are reimbursed by the taxpayer are made on objective, scientific and economic grounds, on the advice of the National Centre for Pharmacoeconomics.
I have asked the HSE to provide an update and they have advised that in terms of Linclotide (Constella®):
Following scientific assessment by the European Medicines Agency (EMA), Linaclotide (Constella® 290 micrograms hard capsules) for the symptomatic treatment of moderate to severe irritable bowel syndrome with constipation (IBS-C) in adults received marketing authorisation in November 2012.
The Corporate Pharmaceutical Unit (CPU) is the unit within the HSE that is responsible for accepting and considering pricing and reimbursement applications from the pharmaceutical industry. The CPU received a pricing and reimbursement application for Linaclotide (Constella®) under the Community Drugs Schemes in May 2013.
Following a Rapid Review by the National Centre for Pharmacoeconomics (www.ncpe.ie/drugs/linaclotide-clonstella/ ), the HSE considered Linaclotide (Constella®) for reimbursement under the Community Drugs Schemes. However, the applicant (Almirall Limited) subsequently disengaged from the pricing and reimbursement process. Reimbursement of Linaclotide (Constella®) has not been pursued to date.
The CPU have not received a communication from any pharmaceutical company indicating an imminent pricing and reimbursement application for Linaclotide.
498. Deputy David Stanton asked the Minister for Health when he expects a hospital building (details supplied) to be ready to accommodate residents; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38873/24]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs this is an operational matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the deputy directly, as soon as possible.
500. Deputy Steven Matthews asked the Minister for Health further to Parliamentary Question No. 516 of 24 September 2024, the position regarding his commitment to ask that metachromatic leukodystrophy is added to newborn screening (details supplied); the actions he has taken to ensure that this happens; if he has attended any meetings with the HSE or the National Screening Advisory Committee to progress his request; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38886/24]
Amharc ar fhreagraCurrently, all newborn babies (between 3 and 5 days old) are offered newborn bloodspot screening (generally known as the ‘heel prick’) for nine rare but serious conditions that are treatable if detected early in life.
In line with the commitment in the Programme for Government, a successor to the National Rare Disease Plan 2014-2018, is currently being developed. A National Rare Disease Steering Group was established in December 2023 and has been tasked with developing the new National Rare Disease Strategy for Ireland. The Steering Group has met eleven times since it was established and has considered a number of issues, including Newborn Screening.
A Rare Disease Patient Forum was also established in February 2024 to ensure that voice of patients and families was central to the development of this new Strategy. Furthermore, a public consultation to gather the views of the public, including industry, on the development of the new Strategy has recently closed, with approximately 600 submissions received.
It is expected that the new Strategy will be finalised by Q4 2024, however, this is dependent on the work of the Steering Group in the development of the Strategy.
The expansion of the National Newborn Bloodspot Screening (NBS) Programme continues to remain a key objective of mine as Minister for Health, and I am pleased to note that the National Screening Advisory Committee (NSAC) has been actively progressing work in this regard.
NSAC is an independent expert group that considers and assesses evidence in a robust and transparent manner, and against internationally accepted criteria. It is important that we have rigorous processes in place to ensure our screening programmes are effective, quality assured, validated and operating to safe standards, and that the benefits of screening outweigh the harms.
Significant progress continues to be made on the expansion of the NBS Programme. As the Deputy will be aware, last year I approved two recommendations from NSAC for the addition of Severe Combined Immunodeficiency (SCID) and Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA) to the NBS programme. This will bring the number of conditions screened for as part of what is commonly known as the ‘heel prick’ test in Ireland to 11, once implemented. I would highlight that this will represent a 37% increase achieved under the lifetime of this Government.
I can confirm that work commenced at the start of this year, with ongoing collaboration between officials in my Department and the HSE National Children’s Screening Programme on implementing an ambitious timeline for the introduction of screening for SMA and SCID.
In February of this year, I was pleased to allocate €1.4m of new development funding in 2024 to support the expansion of the NBS programme. This funding will allow for the rollout of testing for both SCID and SMA and represents a significant funding increase in a single year. The announcement further demonstrates my ongoing commitment to reducing the impact of these rare but serious diseases in children and infants. This investment will be crucial to providing additional funds for new equipment, staff recruitment, validation, quality assurance and training to facilitate addition of new conditions to NBS programme.
In terms of further expansion of our newborn screening programmes, Ireland has always evaluated the case for commencing a national screening programme against international accepted criteria – collectively known as the Wilson- Jungner criteria and Metachromatic Leukodystrophy (MLD) is one of over 30 newborn conditions currently on the NSAC work programme which will be carefully considered by the Committee.
NSAC publishes regular Annual Reports on their website www.nsacommittee.gov.ie and informs me regularly of their decisions in relation to the screening programmes in Ireland. My officials in the Department are working closely with the colleagues in the HSE in progressing the Committee’s recommendations.
The evidence bar for commencing a screening programme should and must remain high. Uptake rates for the NBS programme are enviably high with an estimated of 99.9% and maintaining confidence in and trust of the programme is key to its success. This ensures that we can be confident that a programme is effective, quality assured and operating to safe standards. There is no doubt that newborn screening programmes have the potential to be rapidly transformed by new technologies and new therapies, but this highlights the need to continue with a robust, methodologically sound and detailed analysis of the evidence in each and every case against internationally accepted screening criteria.
Nevertheless, I am acutely aware of how difficult it is for parents, families and children who have received a diagnosis of a rare disease, and how challenging daily life can be for them. This is why I remain committed to the further expansion of screening in Ireland in accordance with internationally accepted criteria and best practice.
501. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Health if an urgent review can take place regarding the refusal of a discretionary medical card in the case of a person (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38921/24]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
502. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Health if orthodontic treatment can be offered as a matter of urgency to a person (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38932/24]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly.
503. Deputy Pádraig O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Health the reason a patient (details supplied) was refused a sensor technology device for type 1 diabetes; if this decision can be reviewed, given the positive impact it would have on their quality of life; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38939/24]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to review and respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
504. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Health the number of posts advertised in the Cork/Kerry primary care child and adolescent psychology services since January 2024; the date those posts were advertised; and the grade of psychologist post in each instance. [38945/24]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
505. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Health further to Parliamentary Question No. 536 of 24 September 2024, if the new national drugs strategy will definitively address instead of just consider alcohol issues, including issues such as internet alcohol marketing; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38946/24]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe national drugs strategy, Reducing Harm, Supporting Recovery, is a health-led response to drug and alcohol use, and it runs from 2017 to 2025. The Strategic action plan for 2023-2024, contains 34 actions across six strategic priorities. Three of the strategic priorities have a focus on alcohol use:
• strengthen the prevention of drug and alcohol use and the associated harms among children and young people,
• enhance access to and delivery of drug and alcohol services in the community and
• develop harm reduction responses and integrated care pathways for high risk drug users.
The Department intends to commission an independent evaluation of the strategy in Q4 2024. It is expected that the evaluation will be completed in early 2025.
The recommendations of the Citizens Assembly will be critical in shaping the future development of drugs policy. Policy will also be guided by a) the views of people with lived and living experience of drug use and b) international collaboration on evidence-based policies and practices on drugs.
The proposed timeframe for the finalisation of the new national drugs strategy is the first quarter of 2025.
Information on the Department's alcohol policy is set out at www.gov.ie/en/policy-information/89335d-healthy-ireland-alcohol-policy/#:~:text=The%20primary%20policy%20objectives%20of,by%20the%20misuse%20of%20alcohol
I am fully aware of the harms of alcohol use and the overlap with other forms of drug use. It is my ambition that the next national drugs strategy will address the reasons why people use drugs and alcohol, reduce the harms associated with problematic drugs and alcohol use and support recovery from drug and alcohol addiction.
506. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Minister for Health if his Department will take urgent action to address the issues in relation to the availability of dental staff given the current circumstances in which the children’s dental service has an estimated backlog of 18 months; if an urgent appointment will be expedited for a child (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38953/24]
Amharc ar fhreagra507. Deputy Imelda Munster asked the Minister for Health the details of the bed capacity on the ground floor east of Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital, Drogheda prior to renovation works carried out in 2022; the current capacity of the ground floor east; the number of beds the renovation works on ground floor west planned to deliver; the cost of this project; the value for money assessments or reports that may have been carried out; the name of the primary contractor for these works; his views on whether best practice and all health and safety regulations were followed during the works; if all building regulations and permits were issued and filed with the appropriate authorities prior to the commencement of the works; the details of what structural surveys were carried out prior to the commencement of the works; his views on whether the project delivered the number of beds promised; if additional inspections and surveys were carried out during and after the process; if so, the reason; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38955/24]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
509. Deputy Brendan Griffin asked the Minister for Health if the full allocation of home help will be granted to a person in county Kerry (details supplied); if the home help hours will be provided earlier in the morning; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38981/24]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs these are operational matters, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the deputy directly, as soon as possible.
510. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Minister for Health further to Parliamentary Question No. 1732 of 9 September 2024, the reason, given that there was a signature from the person (details supplied), that an individual, and Waterford University Hospital, have not complied with a solicitor's letter and a letter from the Irish Medical Council regarding the withholding of clinical records. [38984/24]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
511. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Health the total cost of the contract for IT infrastructure for the National Children's Hospital recently awarded to a company (details supplied), in tabular form; and the impact on any costs arising from delays from the construction of the site to this contract. [38986/24]
Amharc ar fhreagraAn EU journal competitive dialogue tender process was completed and awarded in April 2023. The value of the contract is 31.6m euro as approved by the Children's Health Ireland (CHI) board. It provides for a range of hardware and software solutions which are fully managed including servers, storage, backup and recovery, PCs, printers, workstations on wheels and other mobile devices, as well as cyber security solutions.
Some are already deployed and are in use by CHI. Others such as PCs, printers and fully managed services are deferred waiting until the New Children's Hospital is ready to receive them.
There are no additional costs pending for this contract arising from changed completion dates of the construction of the New Children's Hospital. Expenditure on delivery of technology into the new hospital has been deferred, where possible, until such time as it is ready to receive it.
512. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Health the commissioning timeline and the cost breakdown for commissioning the National Children's Hospital site once construction is complete. [38987/24]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Government is committed to seeing this world-class hospital for the treatment of children open as soon as possible.
There is a significant ongoing programme of work to prepare for the opening of the new children’s hospital, under the Children’s Hospital Programme.
The Children’s Hospital Programme encompasses the integration of the existing hospitals, the commissioning of the satellite centres and the new hospital site, and the delivery of advanced ICT systems and the Electronic Healthcare Record. The two satellite centres at Tallaght and Connolly, which represent major milestones in the programme, have been commissioned and are open.
A major aspect of the commissioning work is the onsite operational commissioning phase. This is the phase following substantial completion of the new children’s hospital and before the opening of new hospital. With over 4,600 clinical spaces, this will be a complex phase. In preparation for this phase, CHI started the pre-commissioning phase in July 2023. This pre-commissioning phase will continue until substantial completion of the building and handover to CHI when the operational commissioning period of at least 6 months will commence.
The budget for the new children’s hospital, as approved by Government in February 2024, is €2.24 billion. This includes c.€1.9billion for the capital construction projects and c.€360m for Children’s Hospital Programme.
513. Deputy Neasa Hourigan asked the Minister for Health further to funding commitments made in 2004 to develop national electronic healthcare records, how the electronic health records in St. James’s Hospital are currently funded; the cost to the State to expand this system to the rest of the country; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39005/24]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe electronic healthcare record (EHR) system at St. James Hospital was procured as a standalone system from one of the leading EHR providers, globally. The same solution was procured separately to provide an electronic healthcare record for babies and mothers in our maternity hospitals.
Now that it is deployed at St. James, funding is provided through the overarching annual revenue allocation to St. James hospital, to cover licence, hosting and other operational costs. Proposals to enhance the capabilities or scope of the EHR at St. James are considered under the capital sanction process and associated circulars from DPENDR 14/2021 ‘Arrangements for Oversight of Digital and ICT-related Initiatives in the Civil and Public Service’.
It is not possible to simply expand this system across the rest of the country as the EHR market is small but extremely competitive. As a public organization, the HSE would be obliged to go back to market to procure an EHR for other parts of the health service and under this scenario, it is very possible that any EHR vendor, including or other than the one used at St. James Hospital, could be successful. Such a procurement would also provide better insights into the actual costs of deploying EHRs on a wider scale. The ‘Digital for Care’ strategic framework provides a clear, stepwise approach on how best to expand the use of electronic health records in Ireland, ultimately resulting in one digital health record for each person in Ireland.
514. Deputy Neasa Hourigan asked the Minister for Health the measures being taken to ensure those who rely on peginterferon á to manage blood cancer, among other diseases, are not losing out while its manufacturing is delayed; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39006/24]
Amharc ar fhreagraUnder the Health (Pricing and Supply of Medical Goods) Act 2013, the HSE has statutory responsibility for decisions on the pricing and reimbursement of medicines; therefore, the matter has been referred to the HSE for attention and direct reply to the Deputy.
515. Deputy Jim O'Callaghan asked the Minister for Health the status of the manufacturing delays relating to the importation of mefenamic acid (ponstan); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39009/24]
Amharc ar fhreagraDear Deputy O’Callaghan,
Thank you for your question in relation to the important issue that is medicines shortages. To provide a comprehensive answer to your question, my Officials have reached out to our medicines regulator, the Health Products Regulatory Authority (HPRA):
Chemidex Pharma Limited, the company responsible for supplying Ponstan, has notified the HPRA of a shortage of Ponstan 250mg Capsules on 27 September 2024. The company anticipates resupply of Ponstan 250mg Capsules during the week commencing 28 October 2024.
The company has also notified a shortage of Ponstan Forte 500mg Film Coated Tablets due to manufacturing delays. The company anticipates resupply of Ponstan Forte 500mg Film Coated Tablets during the week commencing 7 October 2024.
The HPRA maintains a list of current and resolved shortages on its website , where the details, including the information above, are detailed. The webpage is updated daily as the HPRA receives new information.
Shortages of medicines are unfortunately features of modern healthcare systems worldwide, with the causes ranging from unexpected increases in demand to manufacturing issues. However, please be assured that managing and mitigating shortages of medicines is the subject of several workstreams both in the Department of Health in Ireland and the EU.
Ireland has a multi-stakeholder medicine shortage framework in place which is operated by the HPRA, on behalf of the Department of Health, which aims to help prevent potential shortages from occurring and to reduce the impact of shortages on patients by coordinating the management of potential or actual shortages across the health service as they arise.
I understand that shortages of medicines can cause a great deal of stress for patients and their healthcare professionals alike. Thusly, my Department would advise that patients, or their carers, who are concerned about their medicine(s) and their availability speak to their prescribing physician, who will be able to discuss alternatives for them.
516. Deputy Jim O'Callaghan asked the Minister for Health the estimated capital cost of providing an additional 164 acute psychiatric beds in view of the HSE's report on acute bed capacity this year; and the estimated full year cost of staffing them. [39015/24]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
517. Deputy Jennifer Murnane O'Connor asked the Minister for Health the number of kidney, heart and lung transplant procedures carried out within the State to-date in 2024. [39039/24]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
518. Deputy Mark Ward asked the Minister for Health to outline, given the pending sale of a nursing home (details supplied) to a for-profit private care provider, the efforts his Department, the older persons’ portfolio, and their Ministers, make to secure the facility as a high-quality, State-run public facility; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39055/24]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the deputy directly, as soon as possible.
519. Deputy Mark Ward asked the Minister for Health to outline, given the lack of publicly funded older persons’ beds, the measures he has taken in his tenure as a Minister to ensure that private homes in crisis going for sale are secured by the State, in order that residents are not paying the price for State policy failures. [39056/24]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs this is an operational matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
520. Deputy Mark Ward asked the Minister for Health to provide copies of all correspondence from his office to show the actions that were taken to secure a nursing home (details supplied) as a State-run facility; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39057/24]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs this is an operational matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
