Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Wednesday, 21 November 2018

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health

Evaluating Orphan Drugs: Discussion (Resumed)

9:00 am

Photo of John BrassilJohn Brassil (Kerry, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I will be brief as it has been a long session and I do not want or expect answers now. The witnesses may be able to respond in writing. As I said in my opening remarks, the committee stated that the 2013 Act needed to be reviewed. Clearly, the opening statement from the Department contravened that. I ask that the committee looks at that and furnishes a response. The Act still needs to be reviewed. I asked how much was spent on orphan drugs. The legislation does not make separate provision for those. The National Centre for Pharmacoeconomics, NCPE, published a report recently, which was prepared by its deputy head and which set out a review from 2012 to 2017 of rapid reviews submitted. I ask for a consideration of that to extract the orphan drugs from the data to inform the committee as to how much is being spent there. The last time Professor Barry was before the committee, his organisation was very understaffed, with only 11 out of 23 posts filled. I am glad to see that, following my representations, it now has 18 out of 23. I will submit a further parliamentary question looking for the remaining five.

Comments

No comments

Log in or join to post a public comment.