Written Answers Nos. 234-243
234. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Health his views on whether there is an urgent need to provide a supported housing solution in the case of a person (details supplied); when the person will benefit from an allocation after ten years; his further views on whether this is a reasonable timeframe for provision of service; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43067/18]
View answerThis Parliamentary Question does not appear to be for my Department. Responsibility for supported housing comes under the remit of the Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government.
235. Deputy Alan Kelly asked the Minister for Health if his Department has concluded the number of CervicalCheck cancer cases that need to be reviewed by the Royak College of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, RCOG, review; the number of those cases which were and were not part of the original audit, respectively; the number of cases added from the cross-checking with the National Cancer Registry; the number of cases he expects to be added as a result of the use of the 18-month audit timeline; the person in the HSE who decided the 18-month timeframe; if his attention has been drawn to this timeline; if so, when; his views on this timeline; if there will be cases that are part of the RCOG review that originate from post 1 January 2018; and the number of cases expected to be added also as a result of the audit of CervicalCheck being ceased. [43085/18]
View answerThe Independent Expert Panel Review of cervical screening, to be led by the Royal College of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, with expert input from the British Society for Colposcopy and Cervical Pathology, will include women who have been diagnosed with invasive cervical cancer and who had previously had smear tests through the national CervicalCheck screening programme. Some of these women have had their cases audited by the programme already, and some have not.
The overall cohort for the review includes 3,112 women in Ireland who were diagnosed with invasive cervical cancer since the beginning of CervicalCheck in September 2008. This figure is made up of:
- 1,482 cases known to CervicalCheck, who have had their cases audited by the programme.
- 1,630 additional cases who were not known to CervicalCheck prior to 2018. These are cases that were registered on the National Cancer Registry of Ireland, as of the 5th May 2018,. These cases have not been audited by CervicalCheck.
Within this overall cohort, the number of women who had previously been screened by the CervicalCheck programme is approximately 1,850. All of these cases will be reviewed by the Independent Clinical Expert Review, whether or not they were previously audited by CervicalCheck.
The 221 women known to be affected are those whose history was audited by CervicalCheck and for whom the audit showed a differing cytology recommendation to their original test. It is to be expected that more cases of discordant results will be found once the Review led by the RCOG has concluded.
In regard to clinical audit within CervicalCheck, this was paused pending the outcome of the Scoping Inquiry. Dr Scally’s report makes two recommendations in relation to clinical audit to improve the service going forward, and these will be part of the implementation plan which I intend to bring to Government.
In relation to the 18 month audit timeline, I have asked the HSE to respond directly to the Deputy on this issue.
236. Deputy Alan Kelly asked the Minister for Health when the audit of CervicalCheck will recommence by the HSE; and his plans to ensure women who, chronologically and statistically based on previous smear analysis, need to have new smears carried out in a timely fashion do not have their future health outcomes potentially negatively affected by the fact they are now part of a larger number of smears in circumstances in which there are backlogs and some slides are going out of date in view of the commitment he gave to allow all women have a free smear test. [43086/18]
View answerFollowing the emergence of issues relating to CervicalCheck earlier this year, the audit process was paused pending the outcome of the two reviews established by Government.
The first of these was the report of the Scoping Inquiry into issues surrounding CervicalCheck. Dr Scally’s report was published on my Department's website on 12 September and includes 50 recommendations, all of which have been accepted by Government. These include two recommendations relating specifically to auditing cervical screening. Dr Scally recommends that common, robust and externally validated approaches to all aspects of audit should be developed across the screening services. He also advises that there should be two patient advocates involved in the oversight of clinical audit for the screening services. Both of these recommendations will be implemented.
I want to see audit of cervical screening recommence as soon as possible, but it must be done in the right way and in the robust way that Dr Scally recommends, and there is obviously some work required to ensure that happens.
In relation to the second query, on 1 May, following a Government Decision, I asked CervicalCheck to make the necessary arrangements to provide that any woman who had had a CervicalCheck smear test, and whose GP considered that they should have a further test, could access such a test without charge. This decision was taken considering the need to provide reassurance to women.
The HSE advises that CervicalCheck laboratory activity remains significantly above normal levels. This is a result both of out-of-cycle smears, and also increased uptake generally. This has impacted turnaround times for results of smear tests.
The HSE also advises that every effort is being made to ensure that tests are processed as quickly as possible, having regard to the high standards required for testing. This is a priority concern for my Department and the HSE. The recent agreements reached with the contracted labs includes arrangements to address the backlog in testing.
I think it is important to emphasise that smear tests are a screening and not a diagnostic process, and if any women is concerned or is experiencing any symptoms, she should consult with her GP.
237. Deputy Michael McGrath asked the Minister for Health if he will ask the HSE to consider providing certainty around a longer-term model of respite for a person (details supplied) in County Cork; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43132/18]
View answerThe Government is committed to providing services and supports for people with disabilities which will empower them to live independent lives, provide greater independence in accessing the services they choose and enhance their ability to tailor the supports required to meet their needs and plan their lives. This commitment is outlined in the Programme for Partnership Government, which is guided by two principles: equality of opportunity and improving the quality of life for people with disabilities.
The Programme for Partnership Government states that the Government wishes to provide more accessible respite care to facilitate full support for people with a disability.
As the Deputy's question relates to an individual case, I have arranged for the question to be referred to the Health Service Executive (HSE) for direct reply to the Deputy.
238. Deputy Thomas P. Broughan asked the Minister for Health the way in which he plans to work to make orphan drugs more affordable and accessible for those who urgently need them; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43141/18]
View answerThe HSE has statutory responsibility for medicine pricing and reimbursement decisions, in accordance with the Health (Pricing and Supply of Medical Goods) Act 2013. The Act specifies the criteria for decisions on the reimbursement of medicines. As Minister for Health, I do not have any statutory power or function in relation to the reimbursement of medicines.
The 2013 Act requires the HSE to have regard to both the clinical benefits and cost effectiveness but it does not include provision for a different ruleset when assessing orphan drugs. However, both the National Centre of Pharmacoeconomics (NCPE) and the HSE are mindful of the differences and challenges in terms of patient numbers when assessing this type of medicine.
The NCPE conducts health technology assessments (HTAs) for the HSE and makes recommendations on reimbursement to assist HSE decisions. The NCPE uses a decision framework to systematically assess whether a drug is cost-effective as a health intervention. These HTAs often allow the HSE to negotiate discounts on new medicines providing greater access to patients.
In line with the recommendations of the National Rare Diseases Plan 2014-2018, the HSE established a Rare Diseases Medicinal Products/Technology Review Committee in 2018, which is now operational.
This Committee is responsible for:
1. Reviewing proposals received from industry or expert groups in Ireland for funding of new products for rare diseases, or expanded indications for existing products for rare diseases and making recommendations as to the implementation of the relevant recommendations from the National Rare Diseases Plan 2011-2018; and
2. Providing contributions to the development of clinical guidelines for relevant Orphan Medicinal Products (OMPs) and supporting the implementation of guidelines in conjunction with the National Drugs Management Programme Office where applicable.
This Committee reports to the National Director of Acute Hospitals Division and makes recommendations regarding new treatments to the HSE Drugs Committee.
The challenge of securing affordable access to innovate medicines is not unique to Ireland. Over the past two years, I and officials have been engaging with a number of voluntary EU forums including the Roundtable meetings with EU Health Ministers and the pharmaceutical industry, High Level Pharmaceutical Policy Meetings and the Valletta Technical Committee in an effort to identifying solutions to issues of medicine pricing, sustainability and supply.
On the 22 June 2018, I signed the Beneluxa Initiative on Pharmaceutical Policy to work with Austria, Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg. This Agreement is in line with my objective to work with other European countries to identify workable solutions, in an increasingly challenging environment, to secure timely access for patients to new medicines in an affordable and sustainable way.
The Beneluxa Initiative on Pharmaceutical Policy will have an important role to play in securing faster access to innovative medicines and provide important platforms in which to strengthen the policy mix and deliver on the shared objective of securing access to high cost, innovative treatments at affordable prices. The patient is at the centre of this collaborative international approach.
239. Deputy Martin Kenny asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the reason a person (details supplied) is not receiving a 2018 areas of natural constraint, ANC, payment in view of the fact that the person has been informed that the fault lies with another farmer having an over-claim on commonage; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42799/18]
View answerAn application under the Areas of Natural Constraints Scheme was received from the person named on 9 May 2018. The processing of this application has been completed and payment will issue to the nominated bank account shortly.
240. Deputy Niamh Smyth asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if a payment for a person (details supplied) will be expedited; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42801/18]
View answerAs the Deputy would be aware from previous recent PQ's, a review by the Director of Agriculture Appeals Office of the decision of the Appeals Officer has been requested by the Department in this case in accordance with the provisions of the Agriculture Appeals Act, 2001. The Agriculture Appeals Office has indicated that requests for reviews are generally dealt with in order of receipt and that both the Department and the person named will be advised of the outcome when the review has been completed.
241. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if he or his departmental officials have met a person (details supplied) or representatives of companies in the past two years to date; if so, if he will publish a schedule of those meetings and the associated minutes; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42813/18]
View answerI wish to advise the Deputy that neither I nor the staff of my Department have met with the individual or representatives of the company mentioned in the past two years.
242. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine his views on a matter (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42849/18]
View answerMy Department funded the Indecon Report of the Irish Harness Racing Sector, which was published on 1st November 2017. This report provides the sport with a road map for its potential development and I will be supporting the recommendations within my Department's remit from the onset.
In March 2018 my Department agreed the sum of €63,714 to fund the preparation and development of a Five Year Strategic Plan for the Irish Harness Racing Association and the sector. The report was recently received and Department officials are currently examining its contents.
In 2016, the Irish Harness Racing Association received grants totalling €21,704 under the Equine Infrastructure grant scheme.
Similarly in 2017 grants totalling €40,020 were paid to the Irish Harness Racing Association under the Equine Technical Support Scheme.
In 2018, €24,823 in grants were also approved under this Scheme.
Support valued in excess of €25,000 for 'Road Racing Education Programme' were issued in 2017.
I would like to highlight that in addition to the funding already provided, I have already committed to continuing and expanding the pilot integration programme in 2018, which will be also funded by my Department. With a view to raising the awareness of the critical importance of good horse welfare amongst road racing sulky participants and the owners and keepers of trotting horses, my Department awarded a tender to carry out an education programme Horse Welfare course for Road-Racing Sulky Drivers and owners. The first course was run in the Dublin region in May 2018. A second course is currently under way in Tipperary. A third course began at the end of September in Cork and has a high level of engagement with participants in the north of the county. The demand for a fourth course is currently being assessed in other areas.
This expenditure by my Department and my support for the pilot integration programme clearly shows that the Government is supporting this sector in a targeted way.
243. Deputy Brendan Griffin asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine when a 2017 GLAS payment will be made available for a person (details supplied) in County Kerry; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42998/18]
View answerThe person named was approved into GLAS 2 with a contract commencement date of 1 January 2016 and has received the 2016 Advance and Balance, and the 2016 GLAS + Advance payments.
The Department is aware of an issue that has affected the processing of the 2016 GLAS + Balancing payment. Officials are currently working on a solution and it is expected that the case will be resolved shortly.
