Questions

207. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Health if there are plans to introduce an action plan to help increase the number of dental practitioners in Ireland who are prepared to provide care to those who are medical card holders; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [34762/25]

208. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Health the total number of people who have travelled abroad under the treatment abroad scheme to receive dental treatment for each of the years ending 31 December 2021, 31 December 2022, 31 December 2023, and 31 December 2024, in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [34763/25]

749. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Health to clarify the options available to women who have cancer and require breast surgery as regards their access to support services including breast protheses, and, in particular, whether they can attend any facility which is approved by the HSE regardless of where they are located; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [33533/25]

751. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Health to provide an update on the development of the new Obesity Policy and Action Plan, due to be published in early 2026; whether a public consultation on the new iteration of the policy and action plan will be conducted in the coming months, in advance of publication; if so, the timing for that consultation; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [33551/25]

806. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Health when a person (details supplied) can progress with cataract treatment; when an urgent appointment will be made available to them; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [33934/25]

386. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Health to confirm the current status of SouthDoc in Blackpool, as a number of users in the northside of Cork city have stated that the service appears to be wound down, that when they call to make an appointment that they are referred to a SouthDoc service on the southside of the city which is particularly difficult for people who have limited transport options; and if sh…

387. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Health the number of appointments taken in SouthDoc in Blackpool, Cork, in each of the past 12 months; the number of patients that were unable to be seen in Blackpool and were referred to SouthDoc in Kinsale Road, Cork from Blackpool in the same time period; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [33241/25]

814. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Health when a child (details supplied) who has been on the waiting list for ophthalmology treatment for a long time will receive an appointment for surgery as it is urgently needed as per their medical documentation; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [32129/25]

507. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Health the action being taken to reopen podiatry services in the Mayfield area in Cork in view of the fact it was temporarily closed and the patients transferred to Saint Mary’s Campus, Gurranabraher to which no additional staff have been assigned to cater for the increase in numbers that they now have to deal with; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31433/2…

547. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Health in view of the very welcome roll-out of free HRT, whether additional supports will be provided to the small cohort or perimenopausal and menopausal women, such as those with certain cancers and women with blood clotting disorders, who cannot take HRT; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31569/25]

558. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Health if consideration will be given to extending the special leave with pay scheme, and that some form of long term support will be put in place for these workers, particularly in view that approximately 166 employees of the HSE are affected by long-Covid since 2020 as a result of working on the front line during the Covid-19 pandemic; and if she will make a statement o…

560. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Health if consideration will be given to establishing a baby loss certificate for early pregnancy loss-miscarriage; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31607/25]

561. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Health the current services provided by her Department to parents who have suffered pregnancy loss or miscarriage; the additional plans she intends to put in place; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31608/25]

359. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Health when it is proposed to increase capacity in the neurological rehabilitation facility in Tower, Blarney, Cork from 20 beds to 50 beds and recruit the necessary staff, taking into account that there is up to a nine-month waiting time to get into the National Rehabilitation Facility in Dún Laoghaire; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31054/25]

1416. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Health the number of pulmonary function laboratories in Ireland; the number of laboratories with vacancies for respiratory physiologists; the number of respiratory physiologist vacancies per laboratory, in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [29568/25]

1465. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Health if her Department is aware of an academic study (details supplied) that shows increased public health benefits, including increased vaccine coverage rates, in France, following the decision of the French government to legislate for the HPV vaccine to be administered in pharmacies; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [29789/25]

1466. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Health for an update on her plans to implement the Programme for Government commitment to investigate new methods for earlier reimbursement of certain treatments, including early access schemes for rare diseases and cancer medicines; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [29790/25]

1467. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Health if she is concerned by the latest data from the EFPIA Patient Wait Indicator 2024, indicating an average wait time of 645 days for access to new medicines in Ireland, which constitutes a further disimprovement on last year's figures; to outline what plans are underway to improve the structures and speed of the system, in line with the Programme for Government comm…

1468. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Health if the 34 new whole-time equivalent positions for the agencies involved in the HSE's medicines pricing and reimbursement system, as initially prescribed in February 2023 by the then-Minister for Health, have now been successfully filled; whether they have commenced their engagement; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [29792/25]

1469. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Health for an update on the development of a vaccine alliance, aimed at boosting the uptake of childhood vaccines and reducing vaccine hesitancy, which was first launched by the then-Minster for Health in September 2019 (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [29793/25]

1470. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Health her views on the findings of a report (details supplied) in relation to the development of a system of transferable exclusivity vouchers; whether she is supportive of the introduction of such a system at Irish and EU level; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [29794/25]

1485. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Health when the new major trauma helipad at Cork University Hospital will be completed and ready for full usage; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [29872/25]

662. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Health when a child (details supplied) who was urgently referred to St. Finbarr's Dental Hospital, Cork a number of years ago will receive an appointment for orthodontic treatment in view of the fact that it has been a long time since the initial referral was made, and the child in question is in urgent need of dental treatment; and if she will make a statement on the mat…

792. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Health if she will consider advocating for changes at EU level in the revision of the tobacco tax Directive such that the law will facilitate, rather than prevent, generational bans, as some countries are considering such generational bans; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [25230/25]

137. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Health to set out of the total number of deliveries in each of the 19 maternity units, from 1 January 2025 to 31 March 2025; the number of caesarean sections in each of the maternity units; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [24088/25]