Parliamentary questions

318. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether her Department has undertaken or commissioned any assessment of the equity implications of current access arrangements for GLP-1 receptor agonist medicines for obesity or weight management, including the extent to which access is determined by capacity to pay out of pocket rather than clinical need; and whether the forthcoming national …

319. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health to provide the eligibility criteria, prescribing settings, and clinical governance requirements applying to the managed access system under which liraglutide (Saxenda) is reimbursed under the General Medical Services and Drugs Payment Schemes; and to provide the number of patients approved under this pathway in each of the years 2024 and 2025, …

320. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health the current policy position of her Department on whether GLP-1 receptor agonist medicines for obesity or weight management should be eligible for reimbursement under the Drugs Payment Scheme, subject to health technology assessment and clinical governance; whether any policy review is under way in the context of the development of the new natio…

321. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether the national obesity strategy currently in development will explicitly address the role of pharmacological treatment for obesity, including eligibility, reimbursement pathways, and equity of access; and whether she will outline how medicines policy is being aligned with the objectives of that strategy. [10660/26]

322. Deputy Pat Buckley asked the Minister for Health to establish a national screening programme for prostate cancer, given the significance of early detection in improving health outcome, patient prognosis and quality of life. [10665/26]

323. Deputy Pat Buckley asked the Minister for Health to review and consider the provision of full medical cards for persons living with spinal injuries; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [10666/26]

324. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether her Department recognises that, for some people with disabilities and people receiving home-care supports, pharmacist-prepared monitored dosage systems, including blister packs, are clinically required to ensure safe medication administration and compliance; whether any national clinical guidance, policy circular, or Department-approved…

325. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether her Department has undertaken, or commissioned, any patient safety or risk assessment regarding the withdrawal or non-funding of pharmacist-prepared blister packs for people with disabilities or cognitive impairment who rely on such supports in a home-care setting; the findings of any such assessment; and if none has been undertaken, wh…

326. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether her Department has carried out a disability impact assessment, equality impact assessment, or human rights analysis in respect of the non-funding of monitored dosage systems, including blister packs, under the long-term Illness scheme; and if she will confirm whether the implications for people with disabilities living independently or …

327. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health when her Department first became aware that monitored dosage systems, including blister packs, were being provided to patients in practice while pharmacies claimed phased dispensing fees; the policy, governance, or compliance actions that were taken by her Department at that time; and if she will outline the Department’s oversight responsibilit…

328. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health what interim safeguards or guidance have been issued by her Department to ensure that patients with disabilities or complex medication needs do not experience disruption to medication compliance supports during the current pause in changes to phased dispensing arrangements; and whether clinicians or pharmacists have discretion to continue such …

329. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health the mechanism that exist, or are being considered, whereby a clinician, pharmacist, or multidisciplinary care team may formally certify that monitored dosage systems, including blister packs, are clinically necessary for an individual patient; and whether such certification would permit continued provision without cost to the patient under exis…

330. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health the way in which the non-funding of pharmacist-prepared blister packs aligns with national home-care policy objectives that support independent living for people with disabilities and older persons; and whether her Department accepts that medication compliance supports form an integral part of safe home-based care. [10674/26]

331. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health when her Department’s examination of the use of monitored dosage systems, including blister packs, will conclude; whether formal policy proposals will be published; and if she will commit to ensuring that any future framework explicitly addresses the needs of people with disabilities and those receiving home-care supports. [10675/26]

332. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health the total number of residential properties currently owned by the Health Service Executive which are vacant; the number deemed surplus to requirements; the length of time each property has been vacant; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [10678/26]

333. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health to outline the policy framework governing the retention, disposal, or repurposing of vacant residential properties owned by the Health Service Executive; when this policy was last reviewed; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [10679/26]

334. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health the formal engagement that has taken place between his Department, the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, and the Land Development Agency regarding the potential transfer or reuse of vacant HSE-owned residential properties for housing purposes; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [10680/26]

335. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health to identify the principal legal, financial, or administrative barriers preventing the timely reuse or disposal of vacant residential properties owned by the Health Service Executive; the steps being taken to address these barriers; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [10681/26]

336. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health the annual cost to the State of maintaining vacant residential properties owned by the Health Service Executive, including security, insurance, and maintenance; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [10682/26]

337. Deputy Michael Fitzmaurice asked the Minister for Health the reason funding has been stopped under the National Treatment Purchase Fund for a person (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [10688/26]

338. Deputy David Cullinane asked the Minister for Health the expenditure at hospitals (details supplied) on taxis and private transport services for patient transfer, file transfer and other services identified as appropriate, for each of the years from 2021 to 2025 inclusive, in tabular form. [10710/26]

339. Deputy Thomas Gould asked the Minister for Health whether a general practitioner (GP) with a GMS contract can allow another GP in their practice, or a regularly employed locum, see a GMS patient; whether there are set hours for GPs under the GMS contract or if they can work to a minimum number of hours; and whether there is any provision for the agreement of a GMS contract for less than 40 ho…

340. Deputy John Paul O'Shea asked the Minister for Health the amount of funding paid to a company (details supplied) by the HSE from 2020 to 2025 and to date in 2026 to provide a mobile x-ray service in partnership with the HSE in Cork; the number of mobile x-ray services provided for this funding; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [10718/26]

341. Deputy David Cullinane asked the Minister for Health the longest wait time recorded for an ambulance in each ambulance region in each year 2022-2025, in tabular form. [10719/26]

342. Deputy David Cullinane asked the Minister for Health the longest turnaround time recorded for an ambulance at each hospital in each year 2022-2025, in tabular form. [10720/26]