The Second Stage of the Public Access to Defibrillators Bill, which sets out the requirement to provide defibrillators in a range of settings and for events which have a regular attendance in excess of 100 persons per day, was passed in the Seanad in June 2013. The Minister has requested the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) to undertake a Health Technology Assessment (HTA) on the practical elements of the introduction of a public access defibrillation programme and Department of Health officials have met with HIQA to discuss the procedures around a HTA.
The Health Technology Assessment has now commenced and will be concluded in 2014.