asked the Minister for Health if any arrangements have been completed between his Department and representatives of retail pharmacists for the provision of drugs and medicines at reduced prices to necessitous persons who are not holders of medical cards.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Drugs and Medicines for Necessitous Persons.
190.
No arrangements have yet been completed. The practicability of formulating a satisfactory scheme for the distribution, through retail pharmacists, of drugs and medicines to persons who are entitled to them, either free of charge or at a reduced cost, under the provisions of the Health Acts, is at present under examination in my Department, in consultation with the various interests in the drug industry.
The Deputy is, no doubt, aware of the existing arrangements under section 14 of the Health Act, 1953, for the supply, through health authority dispensaries, of drugs and medicines to persons not covered by medical cards, where undue hardship would be involved if they had to purchase them from their own resources.
This is one of the headaches of the health service. To my own knowledge, certain people who are ordered to have certain drugs, fathers of families, for instance, rather than spend the money, will do without these drugs. This will affect their health much more in the future. If there were an arrangement whereby they could get the drugs from a wholesale druggist they would not cost half as much. This is a very urgent matter which seems to demand action. I am not suggesting that there is profiteering but it seems to be a crime to deprive a person of the drugs he needs to cure himself because the price is beyond his limited income.
I am afraid the Deputy is making a speech.
It is a good speech.
I am putting a question to the Minister: could he expedite some means of bringing the price of drugs within the scope of the pockets of the people who need them?
I accept that this is a very difficult and complicated problem from the point of view of a person who must have expensive drugs. I should hope that in cases such as those mentioned by the Deputy, the health authority would operate their "undue hardship" clause which they can use but since this is a difficult and complex matter, I invite the Deputy to express his views on it on the Supplementary Estimate in a couple of weeks time.