Dáil Éireann Debate, Monday - 11 September 2023
1618. Deputy Chris Andrews asked the Minister for Health if he will address the anomaly (details supplied) in the regulations capping expenditure on outpatient medication; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37698/23]
View answerUnder the Drug Payment Scheme (DPS), no individual or family pays more than €80 a month towards the cost of approved prescribed medicines. The DPS is not means tested and is available to anyone ordinarily resident in Ireland. The DPS significantly reduces the cost burden for families and individuals with ongoing expenditure on medicines.
It is a condition of the DPS that no individual or family grouping will pay more than 12 co-payments in a full year. A second co-payment (in the same pharmacy) should arise only in the case whereby an individual is intentionally purchasing the next month’s supply because they will be travelling or for some other such reason.
To ensure that an individual or family grouping who are dispensed a 28 day supply each month make no more than 12 payments in a year, once in a 12-month period a further 28-day supply can be given. The packaging will influence how this can be achieved and quantities dispensed should correspond with the valid prescription recognising that clause 4(2) of the Community Pharmacy Contractor Agreement allows for professional judgement and discretion.
