Parliamentary questions

2642. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether the Health Service Executive maintains a monthly record of funded but unfilled posts at Cork University Hospital; if so, the number of such posts for each month in 2024, and the total associated salary allocation in each month, in tabular form; and if such records are not maintained, to outline the governance, reporting and oversight a…

2643. Deputy Barry Heneghan asked the Minister for Health the reasons inflammatory bowel disease, including Crohn's disease, is not included in the long-term illness scheme; whether she will consider amending the Health Act 1970 to include inflammatory bowel disease in the scheme, in line with other chronic and lifelong conditions; the supports available to children diagnosed with inflammatory bow…

2644. Deputy Maurice Quinlivan asked the Minister for Health if she will consider including systemic lupus erythematosus as part of the long-term illness scheme; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [23675/26]

2645. Deputy Maurice Quinlivan asked the Minister for Health if she intends to increase the number of long-term illnesses included in the long-term illness scheme; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [23676/26]

2646. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health to specify the clinical and operational risk thresholds that must be satisfied before patient transfer to the National Children's Hospital can proceed, particularly during the November to March period [23677/26]

2647. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether a formal written risk assessment on winter patient transfer has been completed; if so, to provide the date of completion and whether it will be published [23678/26]

2648. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health the contingency protocols in place in the event that transfer coincides with peak winter pressures, including escalation triggers and deferral mechanisms. [23679/26]

2649. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health to identify the individual or body with final decision-making authority regarding the timing of patient transfer to the National Children's Hospital. [23680/26]

2650. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether any independent external clinical or operational review has been commissioned in respect of the transfer plan; and if so, to provide details. [23681/26]

2651. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health to set out the current financial control and oversight mechanisms in place for primary care laboratory testing, including standard lipid profile testing, in circumstances where a national dataset on activity and cost is not held centrally; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [23704/26]

2652. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health to provide the total annual expenditure on primary care laboratory testing for each of the past five years, including any estimated or modelled figures used in the absence of a comprehensive national dataset; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [23705/26]

2653. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether any system is currently in place to attribute laboratory testing costs to individual service areas, patient cohorts, or primary care providers; and if not, the interim measures being used to support cost accountability pending the implementation of the National Laboratory Information System; and if she will make a statement on the matt…

2654. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health to detail any audits, reviews, or value-for-money assessments carried out in respect of primary care laboratory testing, including standard lipid profile tests, in the past five years; and if she will provide the findings of such assessments. [23707/26]

2655. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether any national or regional oversight mechanisms are in place to monitor patterns of laboratory test ordering in primary care, including safeguards against duplication or unnecessary testing; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [23708/26]

2656. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health to outline how value-for-money in primary care laboratory testing is currently assessed and assured in the absence of a national dataset capturing the volume and cost of such testing; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [23709/26]

2657. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health to provide the implementation timeline for the National Laboratory Information System, including key milestones, expected completion date, and the governance arrangements in place to ensure delivery; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [23710/26]

2658. Deputy Pa Daly asked the Minister for Health to provide a breakdown of all taskforces that fall under her remit; the dates on which they have met since their inception; the membership of each taskforce; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [23728/26]

2659. Deputy Mairéad Farrell asked the Minister for Health if her attention has been drawn to the proposed introduction of a helicopter emergency medical service (HEMS) in County Galway; if she could confirm that the base of such a service will be located in County Galway; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [23733/26]

2660. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health pending completion of the national Model of Care for gender healthcare services, to set out the current written clinical guidelines, protocols or directives that govern the assessment and referral of minors presenting with gender-related distress within the State [23734/26]

2661. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether any mandatory pre-referral clinical requirements currently apply in respect of minors presenting with gender-related distress, including requirements for comprehensive psychiatric assessment, developmental history, autism screening and differential diagnosis; and to detail those requirements. [23735/26]

2662. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health to identify the body or bodies that currently hold national clinical governance responsibility for gender-related assessment and referral pathways for minors, pending completion of the model of care. [23736/26]

2663. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health the national data currently collected by or on behalf of the State in respect of minors presenting with gender-related distress, including the number of referrals; the number of assessments completed; the number of referrals onward for treatment abroad; the number of approvals granted under the treatment abroad scheme; the expenditure incurred…

2664. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether any interim audit, review or evaluation has been conducted in respect of gender-related assessment and referral pathways for minors, in circumstances where the national model of care remains under development; and to provide details of any such audit, including dates, scope and findings. [23738/26]

2665. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health to specify the safeguarding and consent standards currently in force in respect of minors presenting with gender-related distress, including how capacity, parental involvement and best interests are assessed and recorded in practice [23739/26]

2666. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Minister for Health when section 232 of the Assisted Human Reproduction Act 2024 will be commenced; and the reason for the delay in commencing same [23741/26]