Cathal Crowe (Clare, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

We would be very open to welcoming the Minister back with Revised Estimates if he was to look at that €3 million charge or thereabouts because it is deserving of them all for the very tough year it has been.

I wish to raise the matter of cataract care. There is a successful scheme operating in the north-west, specifically in Sligo, with backing from the Department. It is a simple scheme whereby there is a pathway between appointments and follow-up care. It is shared between hospitals and local private optometrists. It is proven to be successful and has driven down waiting times, as well as times in transitioning between phases of care. The previous Government promised and the new programme for Government promises a national roll-out of that. Has the Minister examined advancing that? I know there is a huge amount of work on his plate but has he looked at advancing that roll-out to a national scale?