Written Answers Nos. 685-709
685. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Health the position regarding developmental checks carried out by public health nurses for young babies; if these checks are occurring in homes; if there is a standard approach across all health regions; if it is planned that these checks will commence in homes across the State; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34692/20]
View answerAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
686. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Health the status of a project (details supplied) with regard to providing additional HIQA compliant beds at Oriel House, Castleblayney, County Monaghan. [34688/20]
View answerAs the Health Service Executive is responsible for the delivery of public healthcare infrastructure projects, I have asked the HSE to respond to the Deputy directly in relation to this matter.
687. Deputy Aengus Ó Snodaigh asked the Minister for Health when 2021 funding will be available for existing Sláintecare projects (details supplied). [34711/20]
View answerBudget 2020 provided €20 million for the establishment of a ring-fenced Sláintecare Integration Fund to test new models of health service delivery. 122 projects were approved under the Fund. These projects, including the project referred to by the Deputy, are currently undergoing a mid-term review by the Sláintecare Programme Implementation Office to assess their progress. No decision on future funding will be made until that review process is complete.
688. Deputy Cathal Crowe asked the Minister for Health the provisions being made to maintain out-of-hours general practitioner services such as ShannonDoc during the Covid-19 pandemic. [34737/20]
View answerA package of supports for general practice is in place since March to ensure that regular essential general practice services and existing levels of out of hours services are maintained and to also allow GPs to assist in the national response to Covid-19.
The arrangements to support GP out of hours during the current public health emergency have been enhanced and extended to 31st of December, 2020 with each GP Out Of Hours Co-Operative receiving a grant payment based on 100% of the daily average costs of all in-person out of hours consultations (provided in the treatment centre and domiciliary based) involving GMS patients provided.
689. Deputy Paul McAuliffe asked the Minister for Health if pharmacy staff that were wearing masks and deemed a close contact of a positive Covid-19 case are classed as casual contacts and can continue to work. [34749/20]
View answerAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
690. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Health if definitive clarity will be provided regarding the term support bubble; the details of that which is and is not permissible for those that form a support bubble with another person who is living alone; the action taken if a person is stopped at a Garda checkpoint on their way to visit their nominated support bubble person who lives in another county; the guidelines associated with all aspects of the formation and practice of support bubbles; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34751/20]
View answerThe support bubble or ‘social bubble’ was introduced to support those at risk of becoming isolated as we moved to Level 5 restrictions nationwide. Details on the operation of support bubbles are available on the gov.ie website.
A person can form a support bubble with another household in the following scenarios:
- if they are living alone with children under the age of 18
- if they live alone
- if they share parenting or custody arrangements
- if they live with an adult they provide care for (for example a dependent adult relation or a partner with dementia)
- if they live by themselves and have a carer or carers who support them, including a live-in carer
A person is only permitted to form a support bubble with one other household if they are not already part of a support bubble, i.e. you can only be part of one support bubble. It is permitted to meet those in the support bubble in your home or their home, outdoors and in places other than home.
It is preferable that people choose a household in their locality to form their support bubble, however it is permitted to form a support bubble with a household outside the 5km limit and this is made clear in online guidance. It is also provided for in regulations where it is provided as a reasonable excuse for travelling. The relevant Regulations are S.I. No. 448 of 2020 Health Act 1947 (Section 31A - Temporary Restrictions) (COVID-19) (No. 8) Regulations 2020, Regulation 5 (2)(w)) which are available here: www.gov.ie/en/collection/1f150-view-statutory-instruments-related-to-the-covid-19-pandemic/.
The guidelines associated with a member of a support bubble developing symptoms of Covid-19 or testing positive for Covid-19 are provided online and it is made clear that people should not visit or meet those in their bubble if they have symptoms of COVID-19.
Information and guidance on support bubbles is available here: www.gov.ie/en/publication/3516d-support-bubbles/#who-can-form-a-support-bubble.
691. Deputy Holly Cairns asked the Minister for Health if routine Covid-19 testing is available for home helps and carers; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34754/20]
View answerAs this a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
692. Deputy Jim O'Callaghan asked the Minister for Health the HSE’s current understanding of the reliability of PCR testing for Covid-19; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34774/20]
View answerAs this a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
693. Deputy Michael Moynihan asked the Minister for Health when he expects the drug imfinzi for advanced lung cancer to become available for patients; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34775/20]
View answerThe HSE has statutory responsibility for decisions on pricing and reimbursement of medicines under the community drugs schemes, in accordance with the Health (Pricing and Supply of Medical Goods) Act 2013. In line with the 2013 Health Act and the national framework agreed with industry, a company must submit an application to the HSE to have a new medicine added to the reimbursement list.Reimbursement is for licenced indications which have been granted market authorisation by the European Medicines Agency or the Health Products Regulatory Authority.In making a relevant reimbursement decision, the HSE is required under the Act to have regard to a number of criteria including efficacy, the health needs of the public, cost effectiveness and potential or actual budget impact.HSE decisions on which medicines are reimbursed by the taxpayer are made on objective, scientific and economic grounds, on the advice of the National Centre for Pharmacoeconomics (NCPE).The HSE has advised that on 28 March 2019 an application was received for the reimbursement of durvalumab (Imfinzi®) as monotherapy for the treatment of locally advanced, unresectable non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in adults whose tumours express PD-L1 on 1% of tumour cells and whose disease has not progressed following platinum-based chemoradiation therapy.In May 2019, the HSE commissioned a full pharmacoeconomic assessment with respect to this indication. On 30 August 2019, the NCPE received the applicant’s submission for this assessment. On 7 May 2020, the NCPE completed its assessment and recommended that durvalumab be considered for reimbursement if cost effectiveness can be improved relative to existing treatments.The final HTA report was reviewed by the HSE Drugs Group, along with the outputs of commercial negotiations which took place in June 2020. In July 2020, the HSE Drugs Group made a recommendation to support reimbursement of durvalumab.The final decision-making authority in the HSE is the HSE Executive Management Team (EMT). The application remains under consideration with the HSE.
694. Deputy Sorca Clarke asked the Minister for Health if his attention has been drawn to the fact that medical card holders in Athlone, County Westmeath cannot avail of the services of a dentist. [34785/20]
View answerAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
695. Deputy Sorca Clarke asked the Minister for Health if the criteria for the roll out of home testing has changed now that level 5 restrictions are in place. [34786/20]
View answerAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the deputy directly, as soon as possible.
696. Deputy Sorca Clarke asked the Minister for Health the number of general practitioner vacancies within CHO8 by county in tabular form. [34787/20]
View answerAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
697. Deputy Sorca Clarke asked the Minister for Health when the promised reduction on charges for prescriptions for medical card holders will be introduced. [34788/20]
View answerBudget 2020 provided for a €0.50c reduction in prescription charges for all medical card holders. The charge will be reduced by €0.50c to €1 per item for the over 70s and by €0.50c to €1.50 for persons under 70. The maximum monthly charge would also be reduced to €10 and €15 respectively.
I am pleased to inform the Deputy that these reductions took effect from 1 November 2020.
698. Deputy Duncan Smith asked the Minister for Health the number of passenger locater forms which have been filled in by travellers into Ireland since the locator form was introduced; the number of persons that were phoned on foot of filling out a passenger locater form; the number of these calls by month in tabular form which resulted in a successful answer from the traveller; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34791/20]
View answerThere have been almost 442,000 COVID-19 passenger locater forms filled in by passengers arriving into Ireland since the electronic passenger locator form was introduced on 26 August.
The form is used to support an enhanced system of engagements with arriving passengers including the targeting of public health messages via SMS. The form is also used for the purpose of contact tracing. To date over 480,000 public health SMS messages have issued.
Passengers arriving from countries with elevated incidence rates are contacted to verify the place of address provided on the form. This is done via interactive SMS with follow up phone calls as appropriate. The number of successful phone contacts made to passengers to verify place of address per month is provided below.
|
Number of successful phone contacts – September |
65,765 |
|
Number of successful phone contacts - October |
30,625 |
|
Number of successful phone contacts – November (1-6) |
1,298 |
699. Deputy Thomas Gould asked the Minister for Health the number of persons on waiting lists for residential addiction treatment services from November 2019 to date, by month in tabular form. [34796/20]
View answer700. Deputy Thomas Gould asked the Minister for Health the number of persons on waiting lists for residential medical detox treatment services from November 2019 to date by month in tabular form. [34797/20]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 699 and 700 together.
As these are service matters, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
701. Deputy Seán Canney asked the Minister for Health when legislation will be reintroduced to amend the current criteria for the nursing home support scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34803/20]
View answerThe Nursing Homes Support Scheme, (NHSS) commonly referred to as Fair Deal, is a system of financial support for people who require long-term residential care. Participants contribute to the cost of their care according to their means while the State pays the balance of the cost. The Scheme aims to ensure that long-term nursing home care is accessible and affordable for everyone and that people are cared for in the most appropriate settings.
The proposed policy change to the NHSS, to cap contributions based on farm and business assets at 3 years where a family successor commits to working the productive asset, has been approved by Government. The Department developed draft Heads of Bill while considering a number of complex ancillary policy and operational matters which may need to be addressed in the proposed legislation.
The stated policy objective of the general scheme of the Bill is to introduce further safeguards in the NHSS to further protect the viability and sustainability of family farms and businesses that will be passed down to the next generation of the family to continue to work them as productive assets to provide for them their livelihood.
The amendment of the scheme will bring certainty to the duration for which a contribution to the cost of care under NHSS will be levied against family farms and businesses. This in turn will support the viability of farms and businesses by increasing the likelihood of access to financing & promoting investment, which will encourage orderly succession planning with family members, encourage young farmers to remain farming and potentially encourage family members that had changed occupation or emigrated to return to the family farm.
The General Scheme of Bill for the Amendment to the NHSS was approved by Government on 11 June 2019 and subsequently published. The changes to the Scheme will come into effect as soon as the legislative process is successfully complete. The General Scheme was sent to the relevant Joint Committee and the Department participated in pre-legislative scrutiny on 13 November 2019. Engagement with the Office of the Attorney General began in early 2020 to progress the legislative development process.
Further progress on the development of the Bill has been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic with focus entirely on responding to the challenges presented by COVID-19. The response to the COVID-19 pandemic has been and continues to be a national and public health priority.
Work on the legislative process with the Office of the Attorney General regarding this Bill has recently resumed.
This piece of legislation is a priority for the government and will be progressed as soon as possible, to support Farm Families and Businesses.
702. Deputy Seán Canney asked the Minister for Health the length of time it will take to provide treatment to the 1,784 persons on the waiting list for orthodontics in County Galway; if the unfilled specialist orthodontist position has been filled; the plans that exist to fill the position of orthodontists on maternity leave; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34822/20]
View answerAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
703. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Health the reason services for dementia patients were abandoned during the pandemic; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34827/20]
View answerThroughout the Covid-19 pandemic, my Department and the HSE have focused on meeting the needs of people living with dementia. The HSE has adapted its community services in order to provide a flexible response. The majority of the HSE’s Memory Technology Resource Rooms are now providing telephone/video assessment and consultation. Primary care team support is operating nationwide, with referrals made to community supports including the Dementia Adviser Service and local authority community response forums. While home support visits have been somewhat restricted, the HSE applies prioritisation and screening measures to identify clients in need of home visits.
In addition, the Alzheimer Society of Ireland continues to support people with dementia and their families. While day care and respite services are suspended, their National Helpline, Dementia Advisers, Online Family Carer Training and Home Care are all still running. ASI have also introduced new online services and supports – Online Support Groups for Family Carers, Virtual Alzheimer Cafés and Alternative Activity Therapy. Their National Helpline is expanding with a new free call-back service which offers people with dementia and family carers the opportunity to book a 1:1 session with a Dementia Nurse or Adviser.
Guidance for re-opening day centres including those for people with dementia has issued to CHOs. CHOs are requested to undertake risk assessments in centres to determine if infection prevention and control measures can be implemented to ensure social distancing and the safe transport of clients to and from centres. Advice from NPHET is that people over 70, as medically vulnerable people, should continue to cocoon and not gather in congregated settings. The HSE is committed to reopening its day services but needs to resolve these issues.
In Budget 2021 the Government has allocated an additional €12.9 million for Dementia services with a particular focus on extending the availability of community-focused supports. The additional investment will provide dedicated access to at least 250,000 additional home care hours. It will improve diagnostic services through the establishment of Memory Assessment and Support Services in Mayo, Sligo, Waterford and Wexford, and a specialist memory clinic in Cork. It will also be used to increase access to in-home day care, further develop the Dementia: Understand Together initiative, provide more dementia advisers, improve the national network of memory technology resource rooms, help deliver an acute hospital dementia and delirium care pathway, and implement the national clinical guideline on the appropriate use of psychotropic medication in people with dementia. All of these measures will help ensure that people with dementia can continue to live well in their own communities with appropriate supports.
704. Deputy Róisín Shortall asked the Minister for Health if the designated authorised officers are adequately resourced and in a position to ensure the implementation of regulations and that those retailers failing to comply with the law will be sanctioned accordingly, in view of the extended two year period of transition on the implementation of section 22 of the Public Health Alcohol Act 2018 now closing on 11 November 2020; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34828/20]
View answerAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
705. Deputy Martin Kenny asked the Minister for Health if his attention has been drawn to the fact that there is a three and a half year waiting list for orthopaedic procedures in Sligo University Hospital; his plans to reduce this waiting time; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34829/20]
View answerThe information requested by the Deputy is being collated by Department officials and a deferred reply will be submitted within ten working days.
706. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Health his plans to introduce inhaler recycling bins in pharmacies here; and if he has consulted with pharmacy representative bodies in this regard. [34854/20]
View answerThe HSE has received proposals from the Irish Pharmacy Union in relation to a national 'Disposal of Unused Medicines Properly' campaign through community pharmacies.
As with any proposal that would have an impact on HSE expenditure, it would require it to be carefully considered in the context of available resources and scoped appropriately. The HSE would anticipate that any future discussions with the Irish Pharmacy Union in relation to a nationwide approach to better medication management, would include appropriate disposal arrangements for unused medicines.
However, the HSE have no plans to introduce such a scheme at this time.
707. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Health the estimated cost of increasing the opening hours of the eye emergency department at the Mater Hospital from the current hours of 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Monday to Friday to 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. Monday to Fridays and from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. on Saturdays. [34856/20]
View answerAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the deputy directly, as soon as possible.
708. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Health the number of critical care and ICU nurses employed across each hospital in the Dublin Midlands Hospital Group as of 31 December 2019 and 2 November 2020, in tabular form; the number in training; and his plans to increase this number even further. [34857/20]
View answerAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond directly to the Deputy, as soon as possible.
709. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Health the estimated full-year cost of recruiting four additional full-time senior psycho-oncologists in tabular form. [34858/20]
View answerAs this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond directly to the Deputy, as soon as possible.
