Mary Butler (Waterford, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the members for attending. This legislation, when enacted, will achieve a number of aims. First, it will provide for an exemption of rent-a-room income of up to €14,000 per annum to be disregarded from the medical card and GP visit card income assessment process. Second, it will amend current legislation to clarify regulatory powers concerning the supply and administration of medicinal products. Third, it will provide for the establishment of regulations to help deal with shortages of medicinal products by way of the introduction of a medicines substitution protocol, MSP. This will include a framework for therapeutic substitution by pharmacists in line with a clinically approved protocol, in other words, the supply of a specified therapeutic alternative medicinal product in limited circumstances, where there is a shortage of a prescribed medicine.

In addition to the amendments already proposed, we also wish to introduce a new amendment at this juncture that will further help us to prevent and manage shortages of medicinal products and improve security of supply. The proposed amendment, which I will outline later in further detail, introduces reporting obligations for actors in the medicines supply chain and allows this information to be used as part of our national approach to prevent shortages and where they occur, to mitigate their impact.

Having taken on board the comments previously raised at past meetings on this Bill, I wish to inform the committee that the Government is in the process of finalising a further amendment to facilitate pharmacist prescribing, which members will all welcome. This is to be introduced on Report Stage in order to be included in this Bill. This will take the form of a further amendment of the Irish Medicines Board Act 1995 to introduce a regulation-making provision that will enable the Minister for Health to make regulations that will enable pharmacists to prescribe.

As the committee is aware, in July 2023, the Minister, Deputy Donnelly, established the expert task force to support the expansion of the role of pharmacists in Ireland, whose first recommendation to extend prescriptions is now in operation. The task force is now addressing the introduction of pharmacy prescribing, of which part will encompass the capacity of pharmacists to assess a framework of agreed minor ailments, with underpinning protocols. By enabling pharmacist prescribing, we open doors for the healthcare service. We empower pharmacists to leverage their unique expertise, take on expanded roles in patient care and play a more integral role in our healthcare teams. We enhance patient access to vital medications, reduce healthcare costs and improve health outcomes for individuals and communities.

It is crucial to emphasise that the implementation of this amendment to introduce prescribing hinges on several key enablers, including education, training, guidance from our regulators and any additional necessary support systems. These foundational elements will be put firmly in place as part of the introduction of pharmacist prescribing. Behind every prescription, every medication and every healthcare decision lies a patient, a person in need of care, compassion and support. It is our duty to ensure they receive the highest standard of care possible.

This authority will be subject to the appropriate framework being in place and will operate in tandem with the safeguards provided for in other legislation, including the following: conferring authority for accreditation and quality assessment of the training; operating in conformance with the applicable standards of care expected and the current fitness to practice and code of conduct requirements as set out by the Pharmaceutical Society of Ireland; and providing for a defined regulatory governance structure to be applied to the settings within which the prescribing activity occurs.