Parliamentary questions

2717. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health to confirm whether her Department or the HSE maintains a consolidated dataset on expenditure under the treatment abroad scheme, including total annual spend, number of patients funded, and average cost per case; to specify whether such data is routinely reported to her Department; and to state whether there are plans to publish this informatio…

2718. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health the policy position in respect of the collection and classification of expenditure under the treatment abroad scheme by treatment category; to confirm whether the absence of category-level data reflects a policy decision or a systems limitation; and to outline any steps being taken to introduce structured data collection to support oversight, …

2719. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health to clarify the governance framework that applies to expenditure under the treatment abroad scheme, including whether the Public Spending Code formally applies to individual funding decisions and programme-level oversight; and to set out how her Department satisfies itself that expenditure under the Scheme meets the standards of regularity, pro…

2720. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health the mechanisms in place to assess, challenge, or verify the costs charged by healthcare providers in other jurisdictions under the treatment abroad scheme; to confirm whether the State has any capacity to benchmark or negotiate such costs; and to set out how she mitigates the financial exposure arising from reliance on externally determined pr…

2721. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether any formal, written eligibility criteria exist governing the approval of funding under the treatment abroad scheme for procedures not available within the State, including gender-related surgical procedures; if such criteria exist, to provide the date of their introduction, the authority under which they were approved, and the body res…

2722. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health the definition of “clinical necessity” applied in the context of approvals under the treatment abroad scheme to specify whether this definition is standardised at national level or determined on a case-by-case basis by referring clinicians; and to confirm whether any national guidance, protocol, or decision-support framework exists to ensure c…

2723. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health to detail the decision-making and approval process for applications under the treatment abroad scheme; to specify the roles of referring consultants, multidisciplinary teams, the HSE, and any central approval authority in determining whether funding is granted; and to confirm whether final approval decisions are subject to independent clinical…

2724. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health to outline the audit, review, and oversight mechanisms in place in respect of approvals granted under the Treatment Abroad Scheme; to confirm whether any audits have been conducted specifically examining the appropriateness, consistency, and value for money of approvals for procedures not available within the State; and if so, to provide the d…

2725. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health the mechanisms in place to ensure consistency of decision-making across the six HSE health regions in respect of applications to the Treatment Abroad Scheme; to confirm whether any central monitoring, benchmarking, or variance analysis is carried out to identify differences in approval rates or referral patterns between regions; and if not, wh…

2726. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health to confirm whether the HSE collects and maintains a centralised dataset in respect of approvals granted under the Treatment Abroad Scheme; to specify the data fields recorded, including procedure type, cost, jurisdiction, and clinical indication; and if such data is not collected in a structured manner, to outline the steps being taken to addr…

2727. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health the national policy framework governing the operation of the Treatment Abroad Scheme; to confirm whether this framework explicitly addresses procedures which are not available within the State but which may be subject to differing clinical or ethical considerations; and to clarify how the Department satisfies itself that such activity is subje…

2728. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether any formal, written eligibility criteria exist governing the approval of funding under the treatment abroad scheme for procedures not available within the State, including gender-related surgical procedures; if such criteria exist, to provide the date of their introduction, the authority under which they were approved, and the body res…

2729. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health the definition of “clinical necessity” applied in the context of approvals under the treatment abroad scheme; to specify whether this definition is standardised at national level or determined on a case-by-case basis by referring clinicians; and to confirm whether any national guidance, protocol, or decision-support framework exists to ensure …

2730. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health to detail the decision-making and approval process for applications under the treatment abroad scheme; to specify the roles of referring consultants, multidisciplinary teams, the HSE, and any central approval authority in determining whether funding is granted; and to confirm whether final approval decisions are subject to independent clinical…

2731. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health to outline the audit, review, and oversight mechanisms in place in respect of approvals granted under the treatment abroad scheme; to confirm whether any audits have been conducted specifically examining the appropriateness, consistency, and value for money of approvals for procedures not available within the State; and if so, to provide the d…

2732. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health the mechanisms in place to ensure consistency of decision-making across the six HSE health regions in respect of applications to the treatment abroad scheme; to confirm whether any central monitoring, benchmarking, or variance analysis is carried out to identify differences in approval rates or referral patterns between regions; and if not, wh…

2733. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health to confirm whether the HSE collects and maintains a centralised dataset in respect of approvals granted under the treatment abroad scheme; to specify the data fields recorded, including procedure type, cost, jurisdiction, and clinical indication; and if such data is not collected in a structured manner, to outline the steps being taken to addr…

2734. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health the national policy framework governing the operation of the treatment abroad scheme; to confirm whether this framework explicitly addresses procedures which are not available within the State but which may be subject to differing clinical or ethical considerations; and to clarify how the Department satisfies itself that such activity is subje…

2735. Deputy Shane Moynihan asked the Minister for Health the actions underway to improve access to appropriate care for those living with lipoedema, including progress on the development of a national HSE care pathway, access to conservative management options such as compression therapy and manual lymphatic drainage, and the operation of the Cross Border Directive in this area; and if she will m…

2736. Deputy Shane Moynihan asked the Minister for Health for an update on the work of the HSE group established in 2023 to develop a national care pathway for lipoedema; the expected timeline for publication; and the extent to which patient representative organisations, including the Lipoedema Support Network Ireland, are being engaged in this process; and if she will make a statement on the matt…

2737. Deputy Shane Moynihan asked the Minister for Health whether any engagement is taking place with private health insurers regarding coverage for clinically indicated treatments for lipoedema, including liposuction; whether there are any plans to review current practices to ensure clarity and consistency for patients seeking treatment; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [23934/26]

2738. Deputy Martin Kenny asked the Minister for Health the reason a person (details supplied) has not received urgent scoliosis surgery yet; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [23961/26]

2739. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Health if additional ambulance services will be provided for the Iveragh Peninsula area (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [23967/26]

2740. Deputy Ged Nash asked the Minister for Health given the considerable cost of the shingles vaccine, if there are plans to make this vaccine available free of charge to those who need it, or to cover the cost of the vaccine through the medical card or long-term illness scheme; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [23968/26]

2741. Deputy Eoghan Kenny asked the Minister for Health the reason that when a person changes health insurance policies mid-contract, they must pay stamp duty on both the former contract and the new contract as per HIA legislation; if any measures are being considered by her Department to alter this legislation; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [23969/26]