Tuesday, 10 Dec 2013

Written Answers Nos. 529-544

Capital Programme Expenditure

Questions (529)

Kevin Humphreys

Question:

529. Deputy Kevin Humphreys asked the Minister for Health of the €83 million in capital funding recorded as not spent under the expenditure profile at end-November in the most recent analysis of gross Voted expenditure Exchequer figures, the reason for the underspend; if he will provide a breakdown of the capital projects or outlays that have not commenced as yet, as per the profile; if any of the €107.2 million in total capital carryover in Government moneys for 2012 relates to his Department; the amount of same; if it has been spent; on what it has been spent; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52952/13]

Written answers

Minister for Health

The Expenditure Exchequer Issues at 30th November 2013 notified a gross capital under spend of €69.9m for the HSE and €15.5m for the Department.

The HSE's underspend is due to a number of factors:

- Major projects such as the Children's Hospital are at an early stage in their lifecycles.

- The procurement of design teams and contractors is taking much longer than expected due to the level of challenges being experienced.

- There are also delays in site commencement by contractors.

- The disposal of surplus assets is proving difficult in terms of achieving the €8m target. Success in disposing of surplus properties is primarily dependent on the market.

My Department's capital expenditure is traditionally drawn down in the last months of the year and it is anticipated that approx.€10m will be spent in December. All capital projects approved in the Capital Plan 2013 have been progressed in the current year. However, some of the major projects have experienced delays which include:

- The National Children's Hospital

- St. James's Hospital - Successful Aging Project

- University College Hospital, Galway - Acute Mental Health Unit

- National Rehabilitation Hospital - Phase 1

- Ambulance control & command centre

- Altnagelvin Radiation Oncology project

None of the €107.2m capital carryover related to the Health Vote.

Medical Card Delays

Questions (530)

Bernard Durkan

Question:

530. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Health the reason for the delay in processing a medical card application in respect of a person (details supplied); if and when a medical card will issue in this instance; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52963/13]

Written answers

Minister of State at the Department of Health

The Health Service Executive has been asked to examine this matter and to reply to the Deputy as soon as possible.

The Health Service Executive operates the General Medical Services scheme, which includes medical cards and GP visit cards, under the Health Act 1970, as amended. It has established a dedicated contact service for members of the Oireachtas specifically for queries relating to medical cards and GP visit cards, which the Deputy may wish to use for an earlier response. Contact information has issued to Oireachtas members.

Health Services Provision

Questions (531)

Jack Wall

Question:

531. Deputy Jack Wall asked the Minister for Health when a person (details supplied) in County Kildare will receive an appointment date for pain management and physiotherapy; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52964/13]

Written answers

Minister for Health

Should a patient's general practitioner consider that the patient's condition warrants an earlier appointment, he or she would be in the best position to take the matter up with the consultant and hospital involved. In relation to the query raised by the Deputy, as this is a service matter it has been referred to the HSE for direct reply.

Medical Card Applications

Questions (532)

Bernard Durkan

Question:

532. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Health if he will set out the remaining documentation required in respect of an application for a medical card in the case of a person (details supplied) in County Kildare; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52973/13]

Written answers

Minister of State at the Department of Health

The Health Service Executive has been asked to examine this matter and to reply to the Deputy as soon as possible.

The Health Service Executive operates the General Medical Services scheme, which includes medical cards and GP visit cards, under the Health Act 1970, as amended. It has established a dedicated contact service for members of the Oireachtas specifically for queries relating to medical cards and GP visit cards, which the Deputy may wish to use for an earlier response. Contact information has issued to Oireachtas members.

Question No. 533 answered with Question No. 515.

Medical Card Applications

Questions (534)

Mary Mitchell O'Connor

Question:

534. Deputy Mary Mitchell O'Connor asked the Minister for Health the reason a person (details supplied) in County Cork has had a medical card application rejected; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52998/13]

Written answers

Minister of State at the Department of Health

The Health Service Executive has been asked to examine this matter and to reply to the Deputy as soon as possible.

The Health Service Executive operates the General Medical Services scheme, which includes medical cards and GP visit cards, under the Health Act 1970, as amended. It has established a dedicated contact service for members of the Oireachtas specifically for queries relating to medical cards and GP visit cards, which the Deputy may wish to use for an earlier response. Contact information has issued to Oireachtas members.

Prescription Charges

Questions (535)

Terence Flanagan

Question:

535. Deputy Terence Flanagan asked the Minister for Health his views on correspondence (details supplied) regarding prescription charges; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [53005/13]

Written answers

Minister of State at the Department of Health

As announced in Budget 2014, it has become necessary to increase the prescription charge due to the very difficult and challenging economic environment which requires the Government to achieve additional savings in health expenditure with €666 million of savings targeted in 2014. The increase in prescription charges will account for €43 million of this target. The Government is committed to achieving these savings while protecting front line services to the most vulnerable to the greatest extent possible.

Medical card holders will be required to pay a €2.50 charge per item for medicines and other prescription items supplied to them by community pharmacists, subject to a cap of €25 per month for each person or family. Prescription charges do not apply to children in the care of the HSE or to methadone supplied to patients participating in the Methadone Treatment Scheme. In order to ensure that the full year savings of €43 million is achieved in 2014, it was necessary to bring the new rates into operation from 1 December 2013.

Sexual Offences

Questions (536)

Clare Daly

Question:

536. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Minister for Health the steps he has taken to deal with the allegations of sexual abuse from hundreds of victims who have been pursuing their claims for almost 20 years against a surgeon (details supplied) in County Louth. [53007/13]

Written answers

Minister for Health

In October 2009, the then Minister for Health and Children announced the establishment of an independent non statutory review, the “Drogheda Review”, to advise her on whether any additional information or insights were likely to be achieved from a further full investigation into the activities of a certain doctor in Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in the period 1964 to 1995.

The report by former High Court Judge Mr. T.C. Smyth was submitted to the Minister in September 2010. The report recommended that a further investigation should not be held and that, in order to avoid prejudicing any civil or criminal cases, the report should not be published. A short summary of the report was, however, prepared and supplied to the patient support groups in January 2011.

I understand that the allegations referred to by the Deputy are the subject of on-going legal proceedings.

The patient support and advocacy group Dignity 4 Patients received €22,500 in funding this year from the HSE. Dignity 4 Patients supports people who have suffered sexual abuse whilst a patient in a medical setting.

Departmental Funding

Questions (537)

Noel Grealish

Question:

537. Deputy Noel Grealish asked the Minister for Health if he will set out details, by year and monetary amount, of where his Department has, and is, supporting health-related campaigns by organisations involved in health advocacy or health initiatives or both; the names of those organisations; the safeguards he has in place to ensure value for taxpayers' money in view of the failure of the myGP.ie website, which was operated by the IMO and which received grants from his Department totalling €2.031 million in 2001-2004; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [53008/13]

Written answers

Minister for Health

The information relating to these costs is not readily available. The information is being collated and I will get back to the Deputy as soon as possible regarding this matter.

Hospital Waiting Lists

Questions (538)

Finian McGrath

Question:

538. Deputy Finian McGrath asked the Minister for Health if he will support the case of a family (details supplied) in Dublin 5 in relation to a two year waiting list for child to get a urology outpatient appointment in Temple Street Children's Hospital; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [53010/13]

Written answers

Minister for Health

For 2013, a maximum waiting time target of 12 months has been set for a first time consultant-led outpatient appointment and this is reflected in the HSE Service Plan. The SDU and the NTPF are working closely with hospitals towards achievement of the maximum waiting time.

Should a patient's general practitioner consider that the patient's condition warrants an earlier appointment, he or she would be in the best position to take the matter up with the consultant and hospital involved. In relation to the particular patient query raised by the Deputy, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond directly to him.

Departmental Agencies Funding

Questions (539)

Terence Flanagan

Question:

539. Deputy Terence Flanagan asked the Minister for Health further to Parliamentary Question No. 200 of 21 November 2013, if he will recheck his reply in view of the fact that the answer provided is incorrect per Health Service Executive annual reports; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [53045/13]

Written answers

Minister for Health

I understand from the HSE that an erroneous and partial reply issued to the Deputy in response to his question of 21 November 2013 and that a full and correct response will issue in due course.

General Medical Services Scheme Administration

Questions (540)

Gerry Adams

Question:

540. Deputy Gerry Adams asked the Minister for Health the position regarding persons who have applied for medical card-general practitioner-only services, having application form signed by relevant GP, and now find that this GP has withdrawn from the GMS scheme; if his attention has been drawn to any such cases, whereby effectively persons are being asked to find an alternative GP, and more often than not GP surgeries are not in a position to take on new patients; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [53052/13]

Written answers

Minister of State at the Department of Health

The General Medical Services (GMS) Scheme requires medical card and GP visit card holders to choose their GP from a list of locally based doctors who hold a GMS contract.

Where a GP retires from the GMS scheme and the HSE is planning to assign the retiring GP’s panel to a new GP after open competition, the HSE may, in the interim, assign persons on the retiring GP’s panel to another GP, until such time as the open competition has been concluded and the panel of patients has been assigned to the successful GP.

Where a GP retires from the GMS scheme and the HSE is satisfied there is an adequate supply of GMS contractors in the area with available capacity, the patient may choose another doctor from the list of locally based GMS contract holders supplied by the HSE.

Medical Card Application Numbers

Questions (541)

Gerry Adams

Question:

541. Deputy Gerry Adams asked the Minister for Health if he will provide a breakdown of the current number of applicants in counties Louth and Meath who are awaiting processing of medical card-general practitioner-only card applications; the number of GPs currently operating under medical card scheme within counties Louth and Meath, along with the number of GPs who have recently withdrawn their services under the scheme; if his attention has been drawn to the difficulties being encountered by persons in accessing GP services under the scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [53053/13]

Written answers

Minister of State at the Department of Health

The Health Service Executive has been asked to examine this matter and to reply to the Deputy as soon as possible.

The Health Service Executive operates the General Medical Services scheme, which includes medical cards and GP visit cards, under the Health Act 1970, as amended. It has established a dedicated contact service for members of the Oireachtas specifically for queries relating to medical cards and GP visit cards, which the Deputy may wish to use for an earlier response. Contact information has issued to Oireachtas members.

Travel Abroad Scheme

Questions (542)

Brendan Griffin

Question:

542. Deputy Brendan Griffin asked the Minister for Health if he will provide funding for a case (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [53067/13]

Written answers

Minister for Health

The Travel Abroad Scheme (TAS) provides for the cost of approved specific treatments in a public healthcare system of another EU/EEA Member State or Switzerland in accordance with EU legislation and guidelines. A decision is made on each application in accordance with this legislation and guidelines and on the basis of a review by clinical experts. The HSE has advised that no application has been received under the Scheme in relation to the case above.

Medical Card Eligibility

Questions (543)

Michelle Mulherin

Question:

543. Deputy Michelle Mulherin asked the Minister for Health the financial assistance given to students in higher education who are over 23 years, have no income and are financially dependent on their parents, who suffer from serious illnesses, resulting in high-cost, regular prescription payments; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [53092/13]

Written answers

Minister of State at the Department of Health

Under the Drugs Payment Scheme (DPS), an individual or family only has to pay €144 each month for approved prescribed drugs, medicines and certain appliances for use by that person or his or her family in that month. The definition of a family for this Scheme is an adult, their spouse, and any children under 18 years. Dependants over 18 years and under 23 years who are in full time education may also be included.

Under the Medical Card Scheme, a person between the ages of 16 and 25 years, who is a dependant of a person who does not have a medical card, will only be provided with a medical card if the HSE assesses that it should be provided to avoid undue hardship to that person. This is set out in the Health Services (No 3) Regulations 1983 (S.I. No. 381 of 1983).

Health Services Staff Issues

Questions (544)

Brendan Griffin

Question:

544. Deputy Brendan Griffin asked the Minister for Health if he will ensure adequate staffing for a facility (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [53093/13]

Written answers

Minister of State at the Department of Health

As this is a service matter it has been referred to the Health Service Executive for direct reply.

Requests for my colleague Minister Reilly to open facilities are normally arranged through his Office. Accordingly I would suggest that the Councillor should make contact with the Minister's Office at [e-mail].