Wednesday, 19 Jan 2022

Written Answers Nos. 1608-1628

Health Services

Questions (1608)

Joe Carey

Question:

1608. Deputy Joe Carey asked the Minister for Health if he will address a query (details supplied) in relation to health services in County Clare; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1092/22]

Written answers

Minister for Health

As this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.

Health Services

Questions (1609)

Joe Carey

Question:

1609. Deputy Joe Carey asked the Minister for Health if he will address a query (details supplied) in relation to health services in County Clare; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1093/22]

Written answers

Minister for Health

As this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible

Health Services

Questions (1610)

Joe Carey

Question:

1610. Deputy Joe Carey asked the Minister for Health if he will address a query (details supplied) in relation to health services in County Clare; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1094/22]

Written answers

Minister for Health

As this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.

Health Services

Questions (1611)

Joe Carey

Question:

1611. Deputy Joe Carey asked the Minister for Health if he will address a query (details supplied) in relation to health services in County Clare; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1095/22]

Written answers

Minister for Health

As this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.

Health Services

Questions (1612)

Joe Carey

Question:

1612. Deputy Joe Carey asked the Minister for Health if he will address a query (details supplied) in relation to health services in County Clare; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1096/22]

Written answers

Minister for Health

As this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.

Covid-19 Pandemic

Questions (1613, 1618)

Michael McNamara

Question:

1613. Deputy Michael McNamara asked the Minister for Health the reason persons (details supplied) cannot be facilitated with EU Digital COVID Certificates; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1097/22]

Brendan Howlin

Question:

1618. Deputy Brendan Howlin asked the Minister for Health if it is intended to add the booster dose to the EU Digital COVID Certificate; if so, if consideration has been given to certifying the receipt of the booster dose to citizens who obtained their booster in Ireland in cases in which they received their original vaccines in another European Union member state; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1103/22]

Written answers

Minister for Health

I propose to take Questions Nos. 1613 and 1618 together.

Following the rollout of the EU Digital COVID Certificate in Ireland, and the successful COVID Booster Vaccination Programme, updated Digital COVID Certificates are now issuing to those who have received an additional vaccine dose.Over 2.2 million additional doses have already been administered in Ireland, and recipients of these vaccines started to receive their Digital COVID Certificate recording their additional dose from the 6th of January.

A specific process is required for those who have been vaccinated outside of the state and subsequently received their booster dose in Ireland. Further details will be made available regarding the provision of these certificates in the near future.

Question No. 1614 answered with Question No. 1383.

Health Strategies

Questions (1615)

Michael Collins

Question:

1615. Deputy Michael Collins asked the Minister for Health the definition of the term reproductive rights in the context in which it was used by a person (details supplied) on 8 December 2021 during a meeting of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Health; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1100/22]

Written answers

Minister for Health

I assume the Deputy is referring to a mention of “sexual and reproductive rights approach” made during the meeting of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Health on 8 December 2021.

As the Deputy may be aware, in 1994 the United Nations International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) recognised rights to reproductive and sexual health as being key to women’s health. The basis for these rights is set out in a number of articles of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW).

In that context, the UN has defined sexual and reproductive rights as including the right to health care and information; the right to non-discrimination in the allocation of resources to health services and in their availability and accessibility. They also include the rights to autonomy and privacy in making sexual and reproductive decisions, as well as the rights to informed consent and confidentiality in relation to health services.

Abortion Services

Questions (1616)

Peadar Tóibín

Question:

1616. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Health the reason that he refused to meet with pro-life parliamentary colleagues and advocacy groups in the lead-up to the three-year review process; his views on whether this one-sided approach is consistent with his claim to have conducted a broad consultation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1101/22]

Written answers

Minister for Health

The Health (Regulation of Termination of Pregnancy) Act 2018 was signed into law on 20 December 2018 and commenced on 1 January 2019. Under section 7 of the Act, a review of the operation of the Act must be initiated within three years of the commencement of the Act, i.e., before January 2022. 

I have commenced the Review of the Health (Regulation of Termination of Pregnancy) Act 2018 in line with statutory and Government commitments.  

The review will examine the Act of 2018, which sets out four different types of situations in which a termination of pregnancy can lawfully occur in the State.  

The Review will access the effectiveness of the operation of the legislation and will be conducted in a fair and transparent manner.  

As I have set out before, the review will comprise a three-part approach to appraise the operation of the Act, with strands focusing on service users, service providers and a public consultation. Independent research commissioned to inform the service user and service provider strands will form key elements of the review. 

As part of the first phase of the review, I announced a public consultation (www.gov.ie/topreview) on the operation of the Health (Regulation of Termination of Pregnancy) Act 2018. The public consultation will provide an opportunity for members of the public, organisations, stakeholders, advocacy groups working in the area, and all other interested parties to inform the review of their views on the operation of the legislation. 

I have previously stated that an independent Chair will be appointed to lead the review later this month. The terms of reference for the Chair are available on the Department of Health website.  

Upon completion of the review, a full report with any necessary recommendations, will be submitted to me as Minister for consideration.

Question No. 1617 answered with Question No. 1383.

Question No. 1618 answered with Question No. 1613.

Mental Health Services

Questions (1619)

Richard Bruton

Question:

1619. Deputy Richard Bruton asked the Minister for Health if there are referral services for adult patients suffering from ADHD; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1105/22]

Written answers

Minister of State at the Department of Health

As this is a service matter I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond directly to the Deputy as soon as possible.

Hospital Waiting Lists

Questions (1620)

Joe Carey

Question:

1620. Deputy Joe Carey asked the Minister for Health when a procedure will take place for a person (details supplied) in County Clare; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1106/22]

Written answers

Minister for Health

Under the Health Act 2004, the Health Service Executive (HSE) is required to manage and deliver, or arrange to be delivered on its behalf, health and personal social services. Section 6 of the HSE Governance Act 2013 bars the Minister for Health from directing the HSE to provide a treatment or a personal service to any individual or to confer eligibility on any individual.

In relation to the particular query raised, as this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.

Hospital Staff

Questions (1621)

Michael Collins

Question:

1621. Deputy Michael Collins asked the Minister for Health the plans that are in place to appoint a telemetry nurse or a qualified professional to operate the EEG video telemetry machine for patients with epilepsy in Cork University Hospital (details supplied); when this piece of equipment will be up and running in the hospital; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1110/22]

Written answers

Minister for Health

As this is a service issue the HSE has been asked to respond directly to the Deputy. 

Departmental Staff

Questions (1622, 1623, 1624, 1652)

Matt Carthy

Question:

1622. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Health the number of officials in his Department that have waived part of their salary in 2021; the amount saved by his Department by these returns; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1114/22]

Matt Carthy

Question:

1623. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Health if a person (details supplied) continues to waive a portion of their salary; the portion of their salary that has been returned to his Department for each month in 2021; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1115/22]

Matt Carthy

Question:

1624. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Health the full cost of salary remuneration provided to the Secretary General of his Department for each month in 2021, in tabular form; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1116/22]

Catherine Murphy

Question:

1652. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Health the total amount paid to the Secretary General of his Department in 2021 to date in 2022; and the breakdown on a monthly basis of the amount paid to the current secretary general of his Department since their appointment. [1215/22]

Written answers

Minister for Health

I propose to take Questions Nos. 1622, 1623, 1624 and 1652 together.

One official from my Department, the Secretary General, arranged on his substantive appointment to the post in April 2021 to waive a portion of his salary on a voluntary basis.

The Secretary General was appointed on an interim basis in January 2021 on his existing annual gross salary of €211,742.   In April 2021, following an open Top Level Appointments Committee process, the Secretary General was appointed to the role in line with the terms and conditions approved for the post on an annual gross salary of €292,000.  The revised Civil Service pay scales which became effective on October 1, 2021 increased that annual gross salary to €294,920. 

Voluntary deductions from pay by any civil servant employed by the Department, including the voluntary waiving of a portion of salary in this way, are not a statutory or contractual requirement and as such the details are personal and private in respect of the individual concerned. 

Question No. 1623 answered with Question No. 1622.

Question No. 1624 answered with Question No. 1622.

Question No. 1625 answered with Question No. 1383.

Vaccination Programme

Questions (1626, 1695, 1815)

John Lahart

Question:

1626. Deputy John Lahart asked the Minister for Health the position regarding the prevention of tuberculosis in Ireland with specific regard to the roll-out of the BCG vaccine which appears to have stalled since 2015-2016; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1126/22]

Paul Murphy

Question:

1695. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Minister for Health his position on the BCG vaccine given that no child has been vaccinated against TB in Ireland since 2015; and his plans in relation to same going forward (details supplied). [1346/22]

Francis Noel Duffy

Question:

1815. Deputy Francis Noel Duffy asked the Minister for Health when the National Immunisation Advisory Committee will report its recommendations regarding BCG immunisation. [1932/22]

Written answers

Minister for Health

I propose to take Questions Nos. 1626, 1695 and 1815 together.

The HSE was requested, in 2019, to undertake an updated review of the epidemiology of TB in Ireland, considering the public health impact of having no BCG vaccination since April 2015. The review was completed and the National TB Advisory Committee (NTBAC) met to consider its findings on 16 December 2019.

My Department has been informed that the view of the Committee was that universal BCG vaccination should not be implemented at that time. The Committee agreed that the decision on whether a selective BCG vaccination programme targeting at risk groups or no BCG vaccination programme should be recommended, was outside the scope of the NTBAC and should be considered by the NIAC.

The NIAC has been asked to make recommendations to the HSE about the BCG immunisation programme. However, as the NIAC has been fully engaged in matters relating to the COVID-19 pandemic, it has not been in a position to complete this work as yet. Once completed, NIAC will submit its recommendation to the Department which will guide the future provision of BCG vaccination in Ireland.

Hospital Staff

Questions (1627)

Louise O'Reilly

Question:

1627. Deputy Louise O'Reilly asked the Minister for Health the number of nurses that underwent training to skill-up in order to work in an ICU setting since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic in tabular form. [1135/22]

Written answers

Minister for Health

At the outset of the pandemic, substantial work was carried out to develop a critical care capacity plan, a key part of which was the provision of training to nurses to allow them to provide support to critical care as required.  In order to ensure the Deputy receives a comprehensive answer, I have asked the HSE to respond directly to her with the information she has requested.

Vaccination Programme

Questions (1628)

Joe Carey

Question:

1628. Deputy Joe Carey asked the Minister for Health the reason certain batches of a vaccine (details supplied) as administered by the NHS in the UK are deemed to be acceptable as a second vaccination in terms of being issued with an EU Digital COVID Certificate and other batches were excluded; if he will now backdate previously excluded batches to be included for the purpose of issuing certificates; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1136/22]

Written answers

Minister for Health

The EU Digital COVID Certificate is a document issued to help facilitate the safe and free international movement of people across the EU during the COVID-19 pandemic. The EU Digital COVID Certificate Regulation allows for the issuing of certificates based on vaccination to citizens vaccinated in a third country provided that the issuing Member State has been provided with reliable proof of vaccination.

Ireland has developed an EU Digital COVID Certificate Third Country portal which is currently accessible to all eligible Irish passport holders vaccinated partially or completely outside of the EU. This portal is available at www.covidcertificateportal.gov.ie

This portal will accept applications from individuals who are 18 years of age and older, hold a valid Irish passport, and a reliable proof of vaccination for a vaccine type currently authorised for use in Ireland.

Current vaccine types authorised for use in Ireland include Pfizer-BioNtech, Moderna, Oxford-AstraZeneca, Janssen, Coronavac (Sinovac), Sinopharm, and Covaxin. 

Individuals requiring additional help can call the dedicated helpline on 1800 807 008 or [phone] from outside Ireland