Disease Management

353. Deputy Eoghan Kenny asked the Minister for Health if her attention has been drawn to the barriers currently faced by patients in Ireland living with lipoedema, including the absence of a published national HSE care pathway, limited access to conservative management such as compression therapy and manual lymphatic drainage, and delays or difficulties accessing treatment through the Cross Borde…

354. Deputy Eoghan Kenny asked the Minister for Health whether the HSE working group established in 2023 to develop a national care pathway for lipoedema has completed its work; when the pathway is expected to be published; and whether patient advocacy organisations (details supplied) will be included in the development and implementation of this pathway; and if she will make a statement on the ma…

355. Deputy Grace Boland asked the Minister for Health the steps her Department and the HSE are taking to address issues relating to barriers currently faced by patients in Ireland living with lipoedema, including the absence of a published national HSE care pathway, limited access to conservative management such as compression therapy and manual lymphatic drainage, and delays or difficulties acce…

356. Deputy Grace Boland asked the Minister for Health if the HSE working group established in 2023 to develop a national care pathway for lipoedema has completed its work; when the pathway is expected to be published; whether patient advocacy organisations (details supplied), will participate in the development and implementation of this pathway; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [2…

438. Deputy Richard O'Donoghue asked the Minister for Health the way in which the commitments in the National Rare Disease Strategy 2025-2030 and 2026 IPHA Framework Agreement which aims for 180-day decision timeline are being applied to this specific case, to prevent further delay in addressing the unmet need; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [23057/26]

891. Deputy Eamon Scanlon asked the Minister for Health the protocol and clinical criteria used for assessing a patient’s eligibility for a continuous glucose monitoring device; the specific procedures in place for evaluating individuals who receive a late diagnosis of type 1 diabetes; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [21670/26]

495. Deputy Marie Sherlock asked the Minister for Health the protocols that are in place for the diagnosis of Lyme’s disease in the health system. [21236/26]

1764. Deputy Barry Heneghan asked the Minister for Health for an update in relation to the decision to include familial hypercholesterolaemia to the list of cardiovascular risk factors screened for in GP settings in 2026 as part of the GP Chronic Disease Management Programme; whether a guideline-directed approach to lipid management will be embedded to enable GPs to assess goal attainment and indi…

11. Deputy Malcolm Byrne asked the Minister for Health the Government strategy to raise awareness of haemochromatosis. [17294/26]

863. Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Health if she has engaged with Epilepsy Ireland regarding their call to expand the chronic disease management programme to include epilepsy; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [16643/26]

864. Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Health her views on the merits of expanding the chronic disease management programme to include epilepsy; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [16644/26]

888. Deputy Ruth Coppinger asked the Minister for Health if she will consider expanding the chronic disease management programme to include epilepsy; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [16850/26]

919. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health if the Oversight Implementation Group for the National Rare Disease Strategy has been established, given that the strategy was published in August 2025; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [16945/26]

922. Deputy John Paul O'Shea asked the Minister for Health if the Oversight Implementation Group for the National Rare Disease Strategy has been established, given that the Strategy was published in August 2025; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [16950/26]

939. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Health the plans for a renewed declaration within our upcoming Presidency of the EU to combat the rise in HIV transmission in EU member States to ensure that there is eradication of HIV in the EU by 2030; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [17033/26]

940. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Health the progress of eradicating HIV transmission as a public health threat in Ireland; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [17034/26]

1029. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether her Department has assessed whether the absence of programme-level expenditure analysis for high-prevalence chronic conditions, including chronic pain, is consistent with public financial management standards and performance-based budgeting principles; whether any review of this matter has been undertaken since 2020; and if she will ma…

626. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health further to the reply to Parliamentary Questions Nos. 2312 to 2316 of 13 January 2026, whether her Department holds the HSE tender evaluation summary, cost-effectiveness analysis, and decision documentation underpinning the decision not to procure enhanced influenza vaccines for the 2025 to 2026 season; and if so, to state whether she will publi…

1201. Deputy Pádraig Rice asked the Minister for Health to clarify if private patients who were previously in a programme can be included in the Chronic Disease Management (CDM) programme (details supplied); the plans to expand CDM eligibility to include all patients with chronic diseases, irrespective of their general medical services or doctor visit card status; and if she will make a statement …

2312. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether her Department considered the procurement of an enhanced influenza vaccine for the 2025–2026 flu season; the advice received from the HSE and the National Immunisation Advisory Committee in this regard; the evidence base relied upon in deciding not to procure such a vaccine; and if she will publish the clinical, cost-effectiveness, and…

2313. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health the estimated additional cost, in absolute and per-patient terms, of procuring an enhanced influenza vaccine for persons aged 65 years and over for the 2025–2026 flu season; how this cost was weighed against projected hospital admissions, bed-day usage, and emergency department demand associated with influenza; and whether a formal cost-benefi…

2314. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether her Department assessed the potential impact of not procuring an enhanced influenza vaccine on winter infection rates, hospital overcrowding, and emergency department capacity during the 2025 Christmas period; and if so, to outline the findings of that assessment and the mitigation measures put in place. [75077/25]

2316. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Health whether budgetary constraints influenced the decision not to procure an enhanced influenza vaccine for the current season; whether a specific budget line was sought or refused for that purpose; and how influenza vaccination policy is prioritised within overall winter-planning and hospital-capacity frameworks. [75079/25]

245. Deputy Pádraig Rice asked the Minister for Social Protection if he will urgently reconsider the decision not to recognise Covid-19 as an occupational illness; to outline in detail the reason Ireland remains an outlier in the European Union, as one of only two Member States that does not formally recognise Covid-19 as an occupational illness; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [707…

324. Deputy Grace Boland asked the Minister for Health if she will review the current list of conditions covered under the long-term illness scheme, which has remained unchanged for over 50 years, with a view to including inflammatory bowel disease, given the significant financial burden of ongoing medication and treatment for patients; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [70637/25]