Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 13 December 2022
617. Deputy Jim O'Callaghan asked the Minister for Health if he will provide an update on the actions, funding and resources provided by Government to tackle substance addiction; and if he will detail for each local health office area the funding provided for each in tabular form; the number of residential detox beds available in each; and the number of person's on waiting lists for detox beds. [62149/22]
View answerThe Governments response to addressing substance misuse in Ireland is set out in the National Drug Strategy ‘Reducing Harm, Supporting Recovery - a health-led approach to drug and alcohol use in Ireland 2017-2025'.
A mid-term review of strategic action plan for 2017 to 2022 was published in 2021. The report on the review is available here. The mid-term review shows significant progress in implementing the action plan for the period 2017 to 2020, with only a small number of the 50 actions outstanding. We have improved access and availability of drug services, especially services for women, people who are homeless and those with heroin addiction. There is a new clinical programme for dual diagnosis and the government is championing an alternative health-led approach for the possession of drugs for personal use. The full report is available here gov.ie - Mid term Review of the National Drug Strategy: Reducing Harm, Supporting Recovery (www.gov.ie)
Following the mid-term review of the Strategy, six strategic priorities were identified for the remaining period of the strategy, 2022-2025, as follows:
1. Strengthen the prevention of drug and alcohol use and the associated harms among children and young people.
2. Enhance access to and delivery of drug and alcohol services in the community.
3. Develop integrated care pathways for high-risk drug users to achieve better health outcomes.
4. Address the social determinants and consequences of drug use in disadvantaged communities.
5. Promote alternatives to coercive sanctions for drug-related offences.
6. Strengthen evidence-informed and outcomes-focused practice, services, policies, and strategy implementation.
The Department of Health provides over €130 million to drug and alcohol services to support the strategy. gov.ie - Reducing Harm, Supporting Recovery 2017-2025 (www.gov.ie)
In Budgets 2021 to 2023, a cumulative additional €24.4 million was provided to implement the NDS. Details of the specific measures in Budget 2023, which amounted to over €5m, along with €3.5m for maintain existing level of services, are attached.
I am committed to providing the resources necessary to implement the National Drug Strategy, in particular the six strategic priorities for the period 2022-2025.
As part of this question relates to detox beds and local health office funding which are service matters, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the deputy directly on them, as soon as possible.
