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Cross-Border Co-operation

Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 24 November 2021

Wednesday, 24 November 2021

Ceisteanna (165)

Christopher O'Sullivan

Ceist:

165. Deputy Christopher O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Health if support will be considered for additional expenses such as accommodation for the family of patients who have to travel for treatment under the cross-Border directive; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [57645/21]

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Freagraí scríofa

The EU Cross Border Directive (CBD) provides rules for the reimbursements to patients of the cost of receiving treatment abroad, where the patient would be entitled to such treatment in their home Member State, and supplements the rights that patients already have at EU level. The CBD enables persons resident in the State to access and be reimbursed for healthcare in another Member State by the HSE, provided such healthcare is publicly available within Ireland.

The EU CBD is a patient centred initiative and does not extend to the family members of a patient. Reimbursement under this scheme is made at the lesser of either the cost of the treatment in Ireland, or the cost of the treatment incurred by the patient in the other State. Details are available from the HSE's CBD National Contact Point (NCP). It is important to note that reimbursement is confined to the costs of the care itself and does not include any additional costs, such as travel or accommodation costs, incurred by the patient. There are no plans to expand coverage of the scheme to cover the costs of the family members of patients.

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