Parliamentary questions

460. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health if her Department plans to introduce a dedicated older persons pain strategy aligned with Sláintecare’s integrated-care objectives; and if so, the planned scope, timelines and implementation milestones. [68704/25]

461. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health the number of applications from persons aged 70 years and over that were refused any form of card, including a GP visit card, in each of the years 2020 to 2025; and the recorded reasons for refusal. [68706/25]

462. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health the number of appeals lodged by persons aged 70 years and over following the refusal of a medical card or GP visit card in each of the years 2020 to 2025; and the number of appeals upheld. [68707/25]

463. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health the current income thresholds used for assessing medical card eligibility for persons aged 70 years and over; when they were last reviewed; and the evidence base used in that review. [68708/25]

464. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health if her Department has conducted any assessment of whether the current income thresholds for over-70s are aligned with the cost of living for that age group; and if she will provide details of any such assessment. [68709/25]

465. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health the number of over-70s whose applications for a medical card were reclassified to GP visit card awards due to marginal threshold exceedance since 2020, broken down by year. [68710/25]

466. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health the number of over-70s whose medical card applications were discontinued due to incomplete documentation or verification requests in each of the years 2020 to 2025; and the number subsequently resubmitted. [68711/25]

467. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health the average processing time for medical card applications submitted by persons aged 70 years and over in each of the years 2020 to 2025, including the longest recorded waiting time. [68712/25]

468. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health the number of over-70s who reported financial hardship, delayed medical care, or difficulty accessing medication following the refusal of a medical or GP visit card since 2020; and if such data is recorded. [68713/25]

469. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health if her Department has carried out any review of the decision-making accuracy in over-70s medical card assessments since 2020; and the findings of that review, including identified error rates. [68714/25]

470. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health the number of over-70s who had an existing medical card withdrawn following a means review in each year since 2020, broken down by year. [68715/25]

471. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health the income bands of applicants aged 70 or over whose medical card or GP visit card applications were refused in each of the past four years, in order to identify the financial proximity to the threshold. [68716/25]

472. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health the number of appeals lodged by persons aged 70 or over following a refusal of a medical card or GP visit card in each of the past four years, and the number of appeals subsequently upheld. [68717/25]

473. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health if she will provide a table showing changes to income thresholds for over-70s medical cards and GP visit cards since 2019, alongside the Consumer Price Index over the same period. [68718/25]

474. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health the number of over-70s who were subject to a means review more than once within a 24-month period in each of the past four years. [68719/25]

475. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health the number of medical card and GP visit card holders aged 70 or over who incurred out-of-pocket medical expenses exceeding one thousand euro in the past year following a refusal or withdrawal of their card. [68720/25]

476. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health the formal mechanisms her Department has in place to obtain assurance that the HSE is monitoring governance, audit, and compliance issues in voluntary hospitals; the process by which her Department is notified of any significant governance risks or failures identified by the HSE in those hospitals; and the actions her Department takes when such…

477. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health the procedure within her Department for responding to serious governance concerns in voluntary hospitals when such issues are escalated by the HSE; and the criteria her Department uses to determine when further action or intervention is warranted. [68738/25]

478. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health the number of inspections, compliance notices, closure orders or enforcement actions issued by the FSAI and authorised officers in meat processing facilities over the past three years; the types of breaches detected; and the follow-up actions taken in each category. [68741/25]

479. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health the reason her Department holds no independent records on the adequacy of the HSE's financial reporting, audit controls or compliance systems for voluntary hospitals, given that voluntary hospitals receive more than €7 billion annually in State funding; and if she will confirm whether any Department-led assurance, verification or risk assessmen…

480. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health if her Department will introduce a national data-collection framework to track short and long-term mental health outcomes for pregnancy loss, including access to counselling, waiting times, and follow-up; and the proposed timeline for that framework. [68755/25]

481. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health if her Department has evaluated the clinical and economic impact of providing standardised post-loss mental health follow-up in primary care, including the cost of early intervention versus untreated trauma and long-term work absence. [68757/25]

482. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health the formal guidance issued by her Department to the HSE regarding paid or authorised leave for staff who experience pregnancy loss before the 24th week of pregnancy; the procedures in place to ensure consistent implementation of this guidance across all HSE hospitals and community services; the number of staff who have availed of such leave in …

483. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health the internal HR circulars, memoranda, or instructions issued by the HSE to managers regarding leave arrangements for staff who experience early pregnancy loss; the date of issue of each document; and the process in place to monitor compliance with these instructions. [68761/25]

484. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health if her Department has undertaken or commissioned any review of compassionate leave policies for pregnancy loss within the HSE; the scope of any such review; and the expected timeline for publication of findings. [68762/25]