Carol Nolan
Question:760. Deputy Carol Nolan asked the Minister for Health if he will commit to the standardisation of the technical aids grant scheme run by the HSE; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46482/21]
View answerTuesday, 28 September 2021
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Written answers
The HSE provides a wide range of medical and surgical aids and appliances free of charge to medical card holders and people on the Long Term Illness (LTI) scheme following assessment by a relevant health professional. These appliances and aids that are provided by the HSE through community services known as Community Funded Schemes (CFS) and play a key role in assisting and supporting service users to maintain everyday functioning, and to remain living in their homes and local community.
Each Community Health Organisations (CHO) operates processes for the allocation of funding for medical and surgical aids and appliances. Each application within a CHO is assessed, both for medical card and LTI card patients, by the local Resource Allocation Group. A determination is made regarding approval based on priority and funding availability within local budgets. At times, due to the demand for resources exceeding the available capacity, waiting lists may apply for some categories of items provided through the medical and surgical aids and appliances budget in a particular CHO. CHOs undertake a range of initiatives to ensure optimum use of resources.
A HSE Primary Care led National Service Improvement Programme has the aim of improving the quality and sustainability of the CFS through the establishment of national standards. These standards will be based on evidence-based rationale and will include a list of approved items, national prescribing guidelines, and clinical criteria for each. This should improve equity of access, value for money, and functional processes. As the situation involving the Covid-19 pandemic continues to improve, this Programme will gather pace.