Ken O'Flynn

1262. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether any value-for-money assessment, benchmarking exercise or cost comparison is undertaken before approval of high-cost treatment abroad scheme referrals. [39158/26]

1263. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether any internal risk assessment has been carried out regarding financial exposure under the treatment abroad scheme arising from the absence of expenditure thresholds or cost ceilings. [39159/26]

1264. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether the Comptroller and Auditor General or HSE Internal Audit has issued any findings, recommendations or observations concerning expenditure governance within the treatment abroad scheme since 2020. [39160/26]

1265. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether the HSE maintains formal written financial approval thresholds for expenditure under the treatment abroad scheme; and if she will provide the monetary values applicable at each approval level. [39161/26]

1266. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether any treatment abroad scheme applications since 2020 required escalation beyond the Treatment Abroad Office in Kilkenny for approval; and if she will provide the number of such cases by year. [39162/26]

1267. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether the HSE maintains a formal escalation framework for exceptionally high-cost, novel, clinically complex or non-routine treatment abroad scheme referrals. [39163/26]

1268. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether any treatment abroad scheme approvals since 2020 required review or sign-off by senior HSE management above Grade VIII level; and if she will provide details by year and grade level involved. [39164/26]

1269. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether the Department of Health receives routine reporting relating to high-cost treatment abroad scheme approvals, aggregate expenditure trends or exceptional financial exposures arising under the scheme. [39165/26]

1270. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether any Ministerial approval, notification or Departmental sanction process exists for treatment abroad scheme cases exceeding specified expenditure thresholds. [39166/26]

1271. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health the highest individual expenditure amount approved under the treatment abroad scheme in each year since 2020. [39167/26]

1272. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether internal audit has examined the governance, approval controls or financial oversight arrangements of the treatment abroad scheme since 2020; and if she will provide the dates and titles of any such audits. [39168/26]

1273. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether any external value-for-money review, governance review or expenditure-control assessment of the treatment abroad scheme has been conducted since 2020. [39169/26]

1274. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether the HSE has identified any governance, financial-control or accountability risks arising from the absence of publicly available approval thresholds within the treatment abroad scheme. [39170/26]

1275. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether the HSE maintains written procedures governing approval authority for treatment abroad scheme applications by staff grade or management level. [39171/26]

1276. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether all treatment abroad scheme approvals are processed solely within the National Treatment Abroad Office in Kilkenny; and if not, the circumstances under which applications are referred elsewhere within the HSE. [39172/26]

1277. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether the HSE applies different governance or oversight procedures to Treatment Abroad Scheme applications involving experimental, highly specialised or unusually costly procedures. [39173/26]

1278. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether the HSE has established any expenditure cap, annual limit or financial-control mechanism applicable to individual treatment abroad scheme referrals. [39174/26]

1279. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health the dates on which the treatment abroad scheme was last audited by the HSE Internal Audit Office and by the Comptroller and Auditor General respectively; whether any findings, recommendations or corrective actions arose from those audits; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [39181/26]

1280. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether any dedicated value-for-money review has been conducted in relation to the treatment abroad scheme since 2020; and if so, to provide details of the review, its conclusions and any resulting policy changes. [39182/26]

1281. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether the Department of Health maintains a formal risk register relating to the treatment abroad scheme; and if so, the categories of risk monitored including financial, clinical, governance and patient safety risks. [39183/26]

1282. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether any external clinical governance framework exists for treatments funded under the treatment abroad scheme; and if not, whether consideration is being given to establishing such a framework. [39184/26]

1283. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether the quarterly oversight meetings between the treatment abroad scheme and the Department of Health produce formal minutes, action logs or governance reports; and whether these documents are retained centrally by the Department. [39185/26]

1284. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether the Department has examined the establishment of an independent oversight or inspection mechanism for the treatment abroad scheme, comparable to governance arrangements applying in other areas of publicly funded healthcare expenditure. [39186/26]

1285. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether any assessment has been undertaken regarding the appropriateness of relying primarily on referring consultants for overseas treatment selection and governance assurance under the treatment abroad scheme. [39187/26]

1286. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health the total annual expenditure under the treatment abroad scheme for each year from 2020 to 2026, inclusive, and the proportion of that expenditure subject to formal audit review. [39188/26]