Tuesday, 22 Jun 2021

Covid-19 Pandemic

Questions (573)

Neale Richmond

Question:

573. Deputy Neale Richmond asked the Minister for Health if a plan has been formalised for the sharing of Ireland’s excess Covid-19 vaccines; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25671/21]

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Written answers

Minister for Health

Ireland is participating in a Procurement Exercise being operated by the European Commission on behalf of Member States to procure suitable, safe and effective vaccines, in sufficient quantities, to combat COVID-19.

Four vaccines have been authorised by the EU, and a number of vaccine candidates are still to be fully assessed. Ireland fully supports efforts by the international community, including as an EU Member State, to ensure fair and equitable access to vaccines for all. To contribute towards this objective, Ireland will utilise the sharing mechanisms available through the EU procurement structure. It is expected that COVAX will be central to this sharing mechanism. With the continuing progress of the domestic vaccination program, greater clarity on the available quantities of vaccines doses and the initial timing that these can be shared with COVAX, is becoming apparent. The Department is in current liaison with the Department of Foreign Affairs, the European Commission and COVAX to ensure that Ireland’s participation, in concert with other Member States, happens in a timely and proportionate manner.

Covid-19 Pandemic

Questions (574)

Verona Murphy

Question:

574. Deputy Verona Murphy asked the Minister for Health the reason persons in County Wexford are being asked to travel to Greystones, County Wicklow for their Covid-19 vaccinations in view of the fact there is a Covid vaccination centre in Enniscorthy, County Wexford; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25675/21]

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Written answers

Minister for Health

As this Parliamentary Question relates to an operational issue, it is a matter for the HSE. However, members of the Oireachtas are advised that the HSE is currently unable to access the information to answer Parliamentary Questions due to the recent cyber-attack, which has required a temporary shut-down of HSE IT systems. The disruption to service is on-going, and the HSE is working hard to restore its IT capacity and resume normal services. Members of the Oireachtas will be advised as soon as the HSE is again in a position to provide responses to PQs and are encouraged to resubmit their Parliamentary Questions at that point.

Covid-19 Pandemic

Questions (575)

Neale Richmond

Question:

575. Deputy Neale Richmond asked the Minister for Health if he has considered allowing those vaccinated with WHO approved Covid-19 vaccines as well as EMA approved vaccines to be exempt from mandatory hotel quarantine and quarantine at home; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25676/21]

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Written answers

Minister for Health

Persons who are fully vaccinated with an approved vaccine and have the documents confirming this do not have to complete mandatory hotel quarantine on arrival in Ireland. Any dependents travelling with such persons, including children, will also be exempted from the requirement to complete mandatory hotel quarantine.

The current policy is to accept vaccines that have been approved by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) only. This policy is kept under review in relation to further developments at a European level.

Fully vaccinated for the purpose of Mandatory Hotel Quarantine means:

A full course of any one of the following vaccines	Regarded as fully vaccinated after
2 doses of Pfizer-BioNtech Vaccine: BNT162b2 (Comirnaty®)	7 days
2 doses of Moderna Vaccine: CX-024414 (Moderna®)	14 days
2 doses of Oxford-AstraZeneca Vaccine: ChAdOx1-SARS-COV-2 (Vaxzevria® or Covishield)	15 days
1 dose of Johnson & Johnson/Janssen Vaccine: Ad26.COV2-S [recombinant] (Janssen®)	14 days

Medicinal Products

Questions (576, 577)

David Cullinane

Question:

576. Deputy David Cullinane asked the Minister for Health the status of the new framework agreement on the supply and pricing of medicines; the steps he has taken to help reduce the cost of medicines to the HSE and to patients; the timeline for negotiations for this agreement given the existing agreement is due to expire in July 2021; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25677/21]

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David Cullinane

Question:

577. Deputy David Cullinane asked the Minister for Health the organisations that he or his officials have met since July 2020 in relation to the process to agree a new framework agreement on the supply and pricing of medicines; his views on whether increased usage of generic medicines and biosimilars can help reduce the cost to the State; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25678/21]

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Written answers

Minister for Health

I propose to take Questions Nos. 576 and 577 together.

Since the 1970s, the parameters of pricing mechanisms and supply arrangements for medicines in Ireland have been determined by the terms of successive agreements between the State and the respective representative bodies of the pharmaceutical industry in Ireland. The most recent agreement was the Framework Agreement on the Supply of Medicines to the Health Services 2016-2020 (FASPM).

The 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, including provision for the existence of any framework agreements in place.

Savings generated from the powers afforded to the HSE under the Health Act 2013 relating to Reference Pricing and Interchangeability of generic medicines falls outside the remit of the FASPM. Similarly, HSE activities to optimise the use of biosimilars in Ireland are separate to this Agreement.

For example, the prescribing of Best Value Biologic medicines is leading to significant savings for the health service under the Gain-Share Initiative. By December 2020, almost 12,000 patients have switched to a best-value-biologic (BvB), almost 57% of the claims submitted to PCRS for payment was for the BvB alternative to the originator biologic and associated annual savings in excess of €46 million has been achieved.

The current FASPM was due to end in July 2020; however, due to COVID-19 it was necessary to implement an extension. The Department of Health, along with our partners in the Department of Public Expenditure and the HSE, agreed with the Irish Pharmaceutical Healthcare Association (IPHA) an extension on the terms of the existing 2016-2020. This remains in place until 31 July 2021 to facilitate preparatory work on the successor agreement within the context of the ongoing COVID-19 challenges.

My Department, the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform and the HSE are presently engaged in preparatory work with a view to initiating negotiations on a successor agreement later this year. My officials are considering all relevant stakeholders as part of this preparatory work.

Question No. 577 answered with Question No. 576.

Medicinal Products

Questions (578)

David Cullinane

Question:

578. Deputy David Cullinane asked the Minister for Health if he has examined the policy proposals by an organisation (details supplied) which if implemented could help free up €1 billion in expenditure over the next five years; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25679/21]

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Written answers

Minister for Health

The policy proposals mentioned have not been brought to my attention or to the attention of my officials in the Department. However, the matters raised are important objectives within the Department. Securing affordable access to existing and new medicines in a timely manner is a key objective of the Irish Health Service. However, the challenge is delivering on this objective in an affordable and sustainable way. Expenditure on medicines represents one of the largest areas of expenditure across the health service and will continue to grow in the years ahead.

The Department of Health is fully supportive of domestic policies that maximise efficiency in our medicines usage. The HSE is actively engaged in implementing effective policy levers across a number of domains and under several initiatives, including those under the Acute Hospitals Drugs Management Programme (AHDMP), the Medicines Management Programme (MMP), and within the Primary Care Eligibility & Reimbursement Service (PCERS).

Foe example, in relation to biosimilar medicines, the AHDMP has a biosimilar strategy in place since 2017. This is making considerable progress using a collaborative approach to bring about changes in prescribing practice.

The MMP completed an evaluation process in 2019 for the identification of the best-value biological (BVB) medicines for TNF- inhibitors under the High-Tech Drug arrangements. In June 2019, a system of gain-share was introduced and is administered by the PCERS with the objective of encouraging the prescribing of the BVB medicines. This has been largely successful in increasing uptake of these medicines.

While progress has been positive, the Department of Health and HSE are continuously monitoring and evaluating the effectiveness of current levers to ensure that the State can capitalise on the most efficient policy approach.

Covid-19 Pandemic

Questions (579)

Marian Harkin

Question:

579. Deputy Marian Harkin asked the Minister for Health when a person (details supplied) will receive their vaccination; the reason for the delay; the timeframe for vaccination; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25683/21]

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Written answers

Minister for Health

As this Parliamentary Question relates to an operational issue, it is a matter for the HSE. However, members of the Oireachtas are advised that the HSE is currently unable to access the information to answer Parliamentary Questions due to the recent cyber-attack, which has required a temporary shut-down of HSE IT systems. The disruption to service is on-going, and the HSE is working hard to restore its IT capacity and resume normal services. Members of the Oireachtas will be advised as soon as the HSE is again in a position to provide responses to PQs and are encouraged to resubmit their Parliamentary Questions at that point.

Health Services

Questions (580)

David Cullinane

Question:

580. Deputy David Cullinane asked the Minister for Health the number of acute inpatient beds in the health service; the number of beds in wards; the number of beds in single room isolation; the estimated cost to replace 10% of beds in wards with single isolation; if he has plans or targets to replace beds over a fixed time period; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25715/21]

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Written answers

Minister for Health

As this Parliamentary Question relates to an operational issue, it is a matter for the HSE. However, members of the Oireachtas are advised that the HSE is currently unable to access the information to answer Parliamentary Questions due to the recent cyber-attack, which has required a temporary shut-down of HSE IT systems. The disruption to service is on-going, and the HSE is working hard to restore its IT capacity and resume normal services. Members of the Oireachtas will be advised as soon as the HSE is again in a position to provide responses to PQs and are encouraged to resubmit their Parliamentary Questions at that point.

Health Services

Questions (581, 582, 583, 585, 586, 587)

Peadar Tóibín

Question:

581. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Health the length of the waiting lists for cancer screening services by county and by hospital. [25716/21]

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Peadar Tóibín

Question:

582. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Health the length of waiting lists for cancer screening services by cancer requiring treatment and by hospital. [25717/21]

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Peadar Tóibín

Question:

583. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Health if the issue of State liability for advanced cancer diagnoses which may be terminal arising from the suspension of cancer screening services has been considered. [25718/21]

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Peadar Tóibín

Question:

585. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Health the estimated time it will take for existing waiting lists for cancer screening and cancer treatment services to be cleared. [25720/21]

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Peadar Tóibín

Question:

586. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Health the specific reasoning underpinning the decision to not fully resume cancer screening services until the end of 2021; and the projected cost in terms of healthcare outcomes of this reasoning. [25721/21]

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Peadar Tóibín

Question:

587. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Health the number of cancer screenings not performed since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic. [25722/21]

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Written answers

Minister for Health

I propose to take Questions Nos. 581, 582, 583, 585, 586 and 587 together.

All three national cancer screening programmes (BreastCheck, CervicalCheck and BowelScreen) are currently operating, albeit at reduced capacity due to the current COVID-19 situation and the impact caused by the recent cyber-attack.

It is important to emphasise that screening is for healthy people who do not have symptoms. People who are between screening appointments, or are waiting for rescheduled appointments, are advised to be aware of symptoms, or if they have concerns or worries to contact their GP, who will arrange appropriate follow-up care.

As this Parliamentary Question relates to an operational issue, it is a matter for the HSE. However, members of the Oireachtas are advised that the HSE is currently unable to access the information to answer Parliamentary Questions due to the recent cyber-attack, which has required a temporary shut-down of HSE IT systems. The disruption to service is on-going, and the HSE is working hard to restore its IT capacity and resume normal services. Members of the Oireachtas will be advised as soon as the HSE is again in a position to provide responses to PQs and are encouraged to resubmit their Parliamentary Questions at that point.

Question No. 582 answered with Question No. 581.

Question No. 583 answered with Question No. 581.

Covid-19 Pandemic

Questions (584)

Peadar Tóibín

Question:

584. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Health if there are ongoing legal actions against the State in relation to the effect of Government-imposed lockdowns upon cancer diagnoses. [25719/21]

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Written answers

Minister for Health

The State Claims Agency (SCA) has a statutory remit to manage personal injury claims on behalf of Delegated State Authorities including the Health Service Executive.

The information requested by the Deputy is not readily available. However, I have asked the State Claims Agency to provide this, and I understand that it will be collated shortly. I will respond directly to the Deputy on receipt of this.

Question No. 585 answered with Question No. 581.

Question No. 586 answered with Question No. 581.

Question No. 587 answered with Question No. 581.

Health Services

Questions (588)

Peadar Tóibín

Question:

588. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Health the number of delayed treatments or appointments for cancer treatment since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic. [25723/21]

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Written answers

Minister for Health

The National Action Plan on Covid-19 identified the continued provision of cancer care as a priority. Cancer services continue to operate in line with guidance issued by the HSE's National Cancer Control Programme (NCCP).

The NCCP is continuing to closely monitor trends in numbers coming forward to diagnostic services, and the level of attendances for appointments for treatment. The total number of patients seen across all Rapid Access Clinics (RACs) in 2020 (44,233) amounted to 88% of the 2019 figure (50,249). GP e-referrals to RACs for weeks 2-17 (up to 25th April) this year stand at 153% of the activity in the corresponding weeks in 2020, and 126% for the corresponding weeks in 2019.

Medical and radiation and oncology services are continuing, utilising the safeguards of social distancing and infection prevention & control measures built up in the past year. The number of patients receiving chemotherapy up to end-2020 was at approximately 88% of 2019 activity, while radiation oncology was operating at >90% of 2019 activity.

Furthermore, the total number of new cancers diagnosed in RACs to end-2020 (5,874) stood at 93.7% of the 2019 figure (6,269).

An important message to everyone now is that, if you have any concerns about cancer, please go to your GP who will arrange appropriate follow-up care. Our cancer diagnostic and treatment services are open, and our healthcare staff will provide any necessary care.

Funding of €12m has been allocated this year for the restoration of cancer services to 95% of 2019 (pre-Covid) levels. This funding is being used to support hospitals in addressing backlogs, extending clinic times, providing additional clinics, increasing diagnostic capacity and providing locum/temporary support. It is also supporting virtual clinics and more accurate triage, and facilitating infrastructure and minor equipment purchases to increase capacity across Rapid Access Clinics and surgical oncology, medical oncology and radiation oncology services.

In addition, as part of Budget 2021, an extra €20m has been allocated for the continued implementation of the National Cancer Strategy this year. This funding is being used to facilitate developments across prevention, diagnosis, treatment and patient supports.

Health Services

Questions (589)

Peadar Tóibín

Question:

589. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Health if the expansion of cancer screening services and cancer treatment has been considered even on a temporary basis to clear the enlarged waiting lists arising from Covid-19 restrictions. [25724/21]

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Written answers

Minister for Health

The National Action Plan on Covid-19 identified the continued provision of cancer care as a priority. Cancer services continue to operate in line with guidance issued by the HSE's National Cancer Control Programme (NCCP).

While capacity across our cancer services has been reduced due to the increased need for physical distancing and infection control measures, funding of €12m has been allocated in Budget 2021 for the restoration of cancer services in the context of Covid-19. This will support diagnostic services, virtual clinics & triage, organisation of treatment services, minor capital works and psycho-social supports.

In addition, as part of Budget 2021, an extra €20m has been allocated for the continued implementation of the National Cancer Strategy this year. This funding is being used to facilitate developments across prevention, diagnosis, treatment and patient supports.

All three national cancer screening programmes (BreastCheck, CervicalCheck, BowelScreen) are operating, albeit at a reduced capacity due to the impact of COVID-19 restrictions and the recent cyber-attack.

The focus of the resumption of cancer screening services includes the management of capacity across the whole of screening pathway, which includes follow-up assessment and treatments.

It is also important to emphasise that screening is for healthy people who do not have symptoms. People who are between screening appointments, or who are waiting for a rescheduled appointment, are advised to be aware of symptoms, or if they have concerns or worries to contact their GP, who will arrange appropriate follow-up care.

In terms of funding, an additional €10 million was allocated for cancer screening services to the HSE for 2021. Many of the new developments being funded in 2021 will help increase capacity and enable the management of screening service users with deferred appointments due to COVID-19. One important initiative prioritised for 2021 is the development and opening of new semi-permanent BreastCheck units in two locations, in Donegal and Dublin, later this year.

Health Service Executive

Questions (590)

Peadar Tóibín

Question:

590. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Health the reason all HSE statements regarding the review (details supplied) carried out in 2019 in relation CervicalCheck have been deleted from the HSE website; when these statements were deleted from the website; the person who gave the instruction to delete same; if he had knowledge that they were being deleted; and if so, if he supported the removal of these statements from the website. [25725/21]

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Written answers

Minister for Health

As this Parliamentary Question relates to an operational issue, it is a matter for the HSE. However, members of the Oireachtas are advised that the HSE is currently unable to access the information to answer Parliamentary Questions due to the recent cyber-attack, which has required a temporary shut-down of HSE IT systems. The disruption to service is on-going, and the HSE is working hard to restore its IT capacity and resume normal services. Members of the Oireachtas will be advised as soon as the HSE is again in a position to provide responses to PQs and are encouraged to resubmit their Parliamentary Questions at that point.

Health Service Executive

Questions (591)

Ruairí Ó Murchú

Question:

591. Deputy Ruairí Ó Murchú asked the Minister for Health the number of assistant psychologists currently working in a voluntary capacity within HSE services by CHO area in tabular form. [25727/21]

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Written answers

Minister for Health

“As this Parliamentary Question relates to an operational issue, it is a matter for the HSE. However, members of the Oireachtas are advised that the HSE is currently unable to access the information to answer Parliamentary Questions due to the recent cyber-attack, which has required a temporary shut-down of HSE IT systems. The disruption to service is on-going, and the HSE is working hard to restore its IT capacity and resume normal services. Members of the Oireachtas will be advised as soon as the HSE is again in a position to provide responses to PQs and are encouraged to resubmit their Parliamentary Questions at that point.

Health Service Executive

Questions (592, 593)

Ruairí Ó Murchú

Question:

592. Deputy Ruairí Ó Murchú asked the Minister for Health if his attention has been drawn to an advertisement (details supplied); the body responsible for the advertisement; if these positions will be readvertised; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25728/21]

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Ruairí Ó Murchú

Question:

593. Deputy Ruairí Ó Murchú asked the Minister for Health his position and that of the HSE in relation to the recruitment of assistant psychologists in an unpaid capacity by the HSE; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25729/21]

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Written answers

Minister for Health

I propose to take Questions Nos. 592 and 593 together.

As this Parliamentary Question relates to an operational issue, it is a matter for the HSE. However, members of the Oireachtas are advised that the HSE is currently unable to access the information to answer Parliamentary Questions due to the recent cyber-attack, which has required a temporary shut-down of HSE IT systems. The disruption to service is on-going, and the HSE is working hard to restore its IT capacity and resume normal services. Members of the Oireachtas will be advised as soon as the HSE is again in a position to provide responses to PQs and are encouraged to resubmit their Parliamentary Questions at that point.