Written Answers Nos. 167-174
167. Deputy Colm Keaveney asked the Minister for Health when a person (details supplied) in County Galway may expect to receive treatment as he has been on a waiting list for a number of years; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43564/14]
Amharc ar fhreagraIn relation to the particular patient query raised, as this is a service matter, I have asked the HSE to respond to you directly. If you have not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days please contact my Private Office and they will follow up the matter with them.
168. Deputy Colm Keaveney asked the Minister for Health when a person (details supplied) in County Galway may expect to receive an appointment due to the fact that his scheduled appointment was cancelled the day before it was due to take place and he was assured a new appointment would issue within 24 hours, but has yet to receive same; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43565/14]
Amharc ar fhreagraIn relation to the particular patient query raised, as this is a service matter, I have asked the HSE to respond to you directly. If you have not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days please contact my Private Office and they will follow up the matter with them.
169. Deputy Thomas P. Broughan asked the Minister for Health if orthodontic surgical treatment has been suspended in some areas of the Health Service Executive Dublin north east region; or, if orthodontic surgery continues to be provided in the region; and the number of surgeries carried out on a weekly basis in the first ten months of 2014. [43577/14]
Amharc ar fhreagraI have asked the HSE to investigate this matter and respond to the Deputy as soon as possible. If you have not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days please contact my Private Office and they will follow up the matter with them.
170. Deputy Jerry Buttimer asked the Minister for Health if his Department or the Health Service Executive have examined the effectiveness of methadone as a treatment for heroin addiction; if he will provide details of the deaths linked to methadone overdose; if alternative treatments to methadone have been considered; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43579/14]
Amharc ar fhreagraMethadone maintenance treatment is a critical stabilising treatment that enables people involved to counter their drug problem use and to rebuild their lives. Government policy in relation to drugs, emphasises the need to provide opportunities for people to move on from illicit drug use to a drug-free life where that is achievable. However, different people in various circumstances may require different approaches to treatment and support.
Methadone maintenance treatment in conjunction with other services and supports, such as counselling, training, rehabilitation and after-care, provides a pathway to recovery for the individual affected by problem substance use. A National Drugs Rehabilitation Implementation Committee, chaired by the HSE, is overseeing the national roll-out of an integrated inter-agency model of care in order to ensure that a person can access the range of services required to support their recovery.
In their 2014 annual report, the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction state that in Europe an estimated 734,000 opioid users received substitution treatment in 2012 with methadone being the most commonly prescribed substitution medication, received by up to two-thirds of substitution clients, while buprenorphine is prescribed to most of the remaining clients (about 20 %). Methadone is the principal substitution medication in six countries within the EU, including in Ireland.
The National Drugs Related Deaths Index report, published on the 21st January 2014, shows deaths up to 2011, the latest year for which data is available. These figures indicate that there was a substantial increase in the number of deaths where methadone was implicated, with 113 such deaths reported in 2011 compared to 60 in 2010. However, the majority of these deaths (86%) involved poly-substance poisonings. In addition, 68% of those deaths where methadone was implicated, were not in opiate substitution treatment at the time of their death. Data including deaths in 2012 will be available early next year.
An Opioid Substitution Implementation Group has been established by the HSE to develop a plan for facilitating the wider availability of buprenorphine products as an alternative to methadone in the treatment of opioid dependence. The Group comprises representations from the HSE and the Department of Health including medical professionals with specific interest in addiction. I understand that the HSE is currently in discussions with the supplier company in relation to the pricing structure relating to the product. The outcome of these discussions will inform the recommendations of the group.
171. Deputy Seán Ó Fearghaíl asked the Minister for Health if a person (details supplied) in County Kildare awaiting an orthopaedic appointment at Tallaght hospital, Dublin 24, for the past five months will have that appointment expedited; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43584/14]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe scheduling of appointments for patients is a matter for the hospital to which the patient has been referred. Should a patient's general practitioner consider that the patient's condition warrants an earlier appointment, he or she would be in the best position to take the matter up with the consultant and hospital involved. In relation to the specific case raised, as this is a service matter, I have asked the HSE to respond to you directly. If you have not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days please contact my Private Office and they will follow up the matter with them.
172. Deputy Sandra McLellan asked the Minister for Health if he will expedite a hospital appointment in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Cork; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43589/14]
Amharc ar fhreagraIn relation to the particular patient query raised, as this is a service matter, I have asked the HSE to respond to you directly. If you have not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days, please contact my Private Office and my officials will follow the matter up.
173. Deputy Micheál Martin asked the Minister for Health if he will review the case of persons (details supplied) in County Kildare whose medical cards have recently been withdrawn; if he will reinstate these medical cards; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43609/14]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Health Service Executive has been asked to examine this matter and to reply to the Deputy as soon as possible.
The Health Service Executive operates the General Medical Services scheme, which includes medical cards and GP visit cards, under the Health Act 1970, as amended. It has established a dedicated contact service for members of the Oireachtas specifically for queries relating to medical cards and GP visit cards, which the Deputy may wish to use for an earlier response. Contact information has issued to Oireachtas members.
If the Deputy has not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days, please contact my Private Office who will follow up the matter with them.
174. Deputy Denis Naughten asked the Minister for Health the steps he is taking to ensure that patients in receipt of fair deal nursing home support are not charged for entertainment or activities, contrary to the nursing home regulations; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43622/14]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Nursing Homes Support Scheme provides financial support towards the cost of long-term residential care services in nursing homes. The Scheme covers the cost of the standard components of residential care which are:
- nursing and personal care appropriate to the level of care needs of the person,
- bed and board,
- basic aids and appliances necessary to assist a person with the activities of daily living, and
- laundry service.
A nursing home may not levy additional charges for the above core services.
A person's eligibility for other schemes, such as the Medical Care Scheme or the Drug Payment Scheme, is unaffected by participation in the Nursing Homes Support Scheme or residence in a nursing home and goods or services which are already provided for elsewhere are therefore not also provided for under the Nursing Homes Support Scheme.
Part 8 of the Health Act 2007 (Care and Welfare of Residents in Designated Centres for Older People) Regulations 2009, stipulates that the registered provider of the nursing home must agree a contract with each resident which specifies the services to be provided to that resident and the fees to be charged. Residents should not be charged fees which are not set out in the contract. The HSE is not party to such contracts which are concluded between each resident and their nursing home.
The Nursing Homes Support Scheme is currently the subject of a review. This Review will include consideration of the issue of additional charges for non-core services. Work on the Review is ongoing. It is expected that the Review will be completed in the coming months and the Report will then be made publicly available.
