Colm Burke (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister to the House and thank him for taking the time to deal with this matter and give a very comprehensive overview of the directive. I have a personal interest in the directive. I apologise to Senator MacSharry for remarking to the Minister that Ministers here get off lightly because when this was being dealt with in the European Parliament, more than 400 amendments were tabled to the document drafted by the socialist group. In 2008 and 2009 I fought very hard to have the privilege of heading the European People's Party group at the European Parliament's Internal Market and Consumer Protection Committee which dealt with the directive. During the debate 380 amendments went to a vote and our group, with the assistance of the liberal group, won 370 of them. The directive as drafted by the socialist group was a little different to what we ended up with, which was what we very much wanted.

I also have an interest in the directive because more than 25 years ago I received medical treatment abroad. I was diagnosed with a very serious medical problem and had surgery in Ireland which did not work. The only option available to me was to go abroad. I was very lucky as I was able to receive treatment in Sheffield. The treatment was developed in Stockholm and Sheffield had begun to offer it. I was also very lucky to be able to afford the treatment. It brought home to me very much that there should be no divide or discrimination when it comes to access to health care regardless of where in society one comes or what category of patient one is, and this is a reason I have stayed in politics. With regard to the references made in yesterday's newspaper, all Members of the House are here because they believe in making changes in certain areas. Making changes in health care is about striving to improve it.

The directive is welcome. If one compares Europe and the US, and one considers the size of the US and how information is shared between the states in the US and how progress in made in developing new health care procedures, it emphasises even more why we need a far more comprehensive and structured approach involving all European Union member states working together. This is another step in this direction.

The directive was passed on 9 March 2011 and will come into force on 24 October. The Minister set out quite clearly a full comprehensive explanation of the directive. It developed throughout Europe because for many people living close to borders, the nearest hospital might be only five miles away but it is in another country. A number of cases were taken to the European Court of Justice whereby people accessed medical care in the nearest hospital, which was in another country, and were seeking the right to receive reimbursement from their home state. The directive will also mean the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland should further co-operate in sharing and improving services and improving the level of care received by all citizens in the State, particularly those living in the Border region who could obtain a service closer to home on the other side of the Border.

Regardless of the directive, each member state has a responsibility to provide safe, high-quality, efficient and adequate health care in its own territory. The Minister has set out the options available. If health care is not available in one's own member state one has the right to go to another member state, and further options will be available under the directive. At present cross-Border health care is dealt with through the treatment abroad scheme which operates very effectively out of an office in Kilkenny. Sometimes I find it is slow to make a decision and I have come across a number of cases, one of which I remember distinctly, which were referred to the Ombudsman. In this particular case, Germany was identified by the parents of a child under the age of two as the best place for treatment, but the treatment abroad scheme refused to cover the cost of the treatment because they went for a consultation outside of Ireland before making the application. The Ombudsman held in favour of the parents of the child and felt they had acted in a reasonable manner. They wanted to obtain the best care for their child but it was not, and still is not, available in Ireland. The structures must work efficiently and satisfactorily.

In his speech the Minister mentioned making available information to people and this is extremely important. I do not want people to get the wrong message and believe this directive means everyone can go to the UK for treatment. This is not what it is about. It is about ensuring people have access to health care, particularly if it is not available in one's own member state or in the case of undue delay. It is important to provide the correct information to those working in health care as soon as the directive is fully transposed into Irish law. On the most recent occasion I spoke to those working on the treatment abroad scheme, which was a few months ago, they did not seem to be fully up to date with what is involved in the directive. The information must be conveyed to all those working in the health care sector as soon as possible.