Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 26 February 2019
389. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Health the processing times for cross-Border directive refunds; the measures put in place to reduce waiting times; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9538/19]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe HSE operates the Cross Border Directive in Ireland. Patients in Ireland can seek to be referred to another EU/EEA country for medical treatment that is available in the public health service in Ireland. The patient may access the overseas service in either the public or private health sector of the country they choose to receive the service in. The patient pays for the treatment and claims reimbursement from the HSE at the cost of that treatment in Ireland or the cost of it abroad, whichever is the lesser.
The HSE's target for reimbursing patients for healthcare accessed abroad under the CBD is a maximum of 20 working days from receiving all the completed documents. However, the HSE confirmed that it currently takes approximately 64 days to process reimbursements. The HSE have confirmed the increase in processing times is due to a significant increase in the amount of applications received for the CBD.
Nevertheless, the HSE informs me that it remains committed to monitoring and reviewing this situation and providing reimbursement to CBD patients in a timely manner given the resources it has available.
