Dan Boyle
Question:15 Mr. Boyle asked the Minister for Defence if his Department has put in place, or intends to put in place, an ongoing system of health monitoring for former members of the Defence Forces. [13159/03]
Written Answers. - Health Monitoring.
There are no proposals to put in place an ongoing system of health monitoring for former members of the Defence Forces.
Recently retired members of the Defence Forces, who had served either in the Balkans or in Kuwait, were offered health screening in 2001, specifically in relation to any anxieties they may have had in the light of the previous deployment and use of depleted uranium munitions during earlier conflicts in those particular areas of operation.
There is no apparent justification for such provision in the case of the Defence Forces as after leaving the Defence Forces such persons are essentially private citizens who go on to lead a wide variety of personal life styles and to pursue numerous different individual careers. There is no evidence that military service in the Defence Forces adversely prejudices future health status, as might be implied by the concept of ongoing health monitoring.
Question No. 16 answered with Question No. 7.