Vol. 462 No. 8
86 Mrs. Geoghegan-Quinn asked the Minister for Health the budget for the placing of advertisements regarding the compensation tribunal for hepatitis C; the amount spent to date on advertising; and if the funding for advertisement comes from his Department or from the estimate for the tribunal. [5439/96]
Limerick East): Decisions in relation to the placing of advertisements regarding the compensation tribunal are a matter for the tribunal. As the Deputy is aware, the tribunal placed advertisements in national and provincial newspapers. The total cost for advertising is £162.268.81, including VAT, to date and has been paid out of the £60 million voted by the Oireachtas for the purposes of paying compensation awarded by the tribunal and the costs of administering the compensation scheme. The advertising is to ensure that all those persons who may have contracted hepatitis C from a blood product or blood transfusion are fully informed of the categories of person entitled to make a claim to the tribunal and the time limit within which to make such application.
Clause 19 of the scheme for compensation provides that claimants must apply to the tribunal within six months of the date upon which they first became aware of the fact that they have been diagnosed positive for hepatitis C or within six months of the date of the establishment of the tribunal, 15 December 1995, which ever date is the later. All such persons need to be aware of their entitlement to seek compensation from the tribunal and of the time limit within which they must apply to the tribunal to enable them, if they wish, to submit completed application forms, accompanied by all the necessary supporting documentation, prior to the closing date.
All awards made by the compensation tribunal will be funded from the Exchequer. As I have already stated in the House there is no limit on the amount that will be made available to pay compensation.
