Joan Collins (Dublin South Central, United Left) | Oireachtas source

In my contribution I wish to echo many of the points that have been made already. The women who were here two years ago believed what the Taoiseach said. He is probably the second highest in command in this country. He said the State and the Irish people apologised profusely for what happened to these women and that they would be compensated in any way possible to make their lives easier and more livable in their latter years, and to show them more compassion and humanity. We cannot give these women back their young lives but we could certainly make their lives better in their older age. The contribution by the Minister yesterday was not firm enough in saying that this is in recognition of what happened and of the apology and it was to implement Mr. Justice Quirke’s recommendations.

I do not know how a Bill, which is primary legislation, can include in it a reference in section 2 to provision of a counselling service “following a referral made in that regard by a registered medical practitioner”. Likewise, chiropody services will be provided “following a referral made in that regard by a registered medical practitioner or registered nurse”. Physiotherapy services also can be provided “following a referral made in that regard by a registered medical practitioner”. The Minister said the Bill is based on the Health (Amendment) Act 1996, but it is not. I will outline what was provided to people who had hepatitis C. It is clear that the medical service and the card were of a very different type.

Once you are awarded the HAA card, you will also be assigned a Hepatitis C Liaison Officer within the HSE area where you live. Their role is to ensure you can access all of the health services to which you are entitled to and also to provide you with information, advice and assistance in relation to service providers. For example your Liaison Officer can assist you in locating a dentist, physiotherapist or chiropodist in your area and will make arrangements for them to be paid for providing you with care. If you wish to have your entitlements administered by a Hepatitis C Liaison Officer outside of the area where you live, that can be arranged for you. Likewise, if you prefer for us not to correspond with you or have information sent to an alternative postal address, we would be very happy to facilitate this.

The liaison officer provided a crucial service in terms of facilitating the use of the HAA card for people affected by hepatitis C. Why, in this legislation, can we not refer the women who were in Magdalen laundries to liaison officers? We are talking about approximately 700 to 800 people in the State and I do not know how many are living outside the State. Liaison officers have considerable experience in dealing with patients with particular needs in regard to hepatitis C.

I will continue to outline what was provided by the HAA card:

GP services, all prescribed drugs, medications, aids and appliances. Dental services, optical and aural services, physiotherapy, counselling, chiropody, home support, home nursing and complementary therapies. You will need to produce your card when accessing services in some cases, particularly if you have not attended the service before, however, the best advice is to keep your card with you at all times in case you are asked to produce it.

The information was provided by the Irish Haemophilia Society Limited to explain to people about their entitlements:

All prescribed drugs and medications once on a prescription are provided to you free of charge. Again the pharmacist claims reimbursement from the HSE. We do not wish for any HAA cardholder to be prevented from receiving any prescribed drugs and medications which they are entitled to receive and we certainly do not wish for a HAA cardholder to be placed in a situation where they are explaining their entitlements to any service provider so what we are advising all HAA cardholders to do....

Chiropody services are provided free of charge, you do not need a referral and can attend whenever you need to do so. Your Hepatitis C Liaison Officer can provide you with details on Chiropodists in your area or alternatively you can attend a chiropodist of your choice once you have given us copies of their qualifications as they need to be accredited to one of the accrediting bodies for Chiropodists. Further details can be found in the guide to services.

The Irish Haemophilia Society further advises:

Counselling services are provided without charge to all HAA cardholders and also their immediate relatives. The Hepatitis C Liaison Officer in your area will provide you with details of counsellors in your area or alternatively you can attend a counsellor of your choice. We do require the counsellor of your choice to be accredited to certain professional bodies and further details on this can be found in the guide to services or by speaking to your Liaison Officer. [No referral is required under the HAA card]... All routine and emergency dental treatments are covered without charge with the HAA card and we try to encourage cardholders to attend dentists already on contract to the HSE via the DTSS (Dental Treatment Services Scheme) however, if you have been attending a dentist not on contract to the HSE and wish to continue doing so, you should talk to your Liaison Officer who will be happy to assist you in continuing care with your dentist. Physiotherapy services provided by chartered physiotherapists are covered by the HAA card, your Liaison Officer will give you details of physiotherapists in your area and further details on physiotherapy services are outlined in the guide to services book... Complementary therapies currently covered under the HAA card are reflexology, aromatherapy, massage, acupuncture and hydrotherapy. HAA cardholders need to be referred by their GP/Consultant in order to avail of this service and the Hepatitis C Liaison Officer will either arrange to pay the therapist directly on your behalf or else will re­imburse you on production of receipts etc.

This is important because it is not included in this legislation. The Minister in his contribution yesterday stated that Deputies will be aware of recent investigations into spending on alternative therapies by the support group for Hep C which has been subject to public criticism in recent weeks. In my view it is wrong to put that out there in that it refers to the Positive Action group and these services were not part of their entitlement under the HAA card although the card covers complementary therapy such as aromatherapy and massage, for example.

The Irish Haemophilia Society further advises:

Optical services are provided to all HAA cardholders and cover any optical services - [these are entitlements] - which are clinically necessary, including the cost of your eye examination and whatever lenses you are prescribed.Access to home support service is available to all HAA cardholders who require assistance in carrying out their normal household duties and this can mean many different things depending on the needs of each individual person. HAA cardholders should not have to wait more than two weeks for an appointment with their liver specialist and also for the first referral to another specialty, this is generally referred to as the two-week rule. [This is specific to Hep C but I presume the Magdalen women have other health needs which would require referral].

The provisions in this legislation are different to those in the HAA card. I ask the Minister and the people involved in drafting this legislation to look at the HAA card and at the primary legislation which is the Health (Amendment) Act 1996, and to consider making some minor changes to allow for the women in the Magdalen laundries. We will support any such changes if it is brought back to the House. There is too much ambiguity and this poses a problem for the survivors.

It is very important to deal with the issues relating to capacity. I ask the Minister to explain how this will be linked into any legislation. With regard to the pensions issue the scheme provides that women with a State contributory pension will be backdated to 18 August 2013 only. However, Mr. Justice Quirke recommended that the women should be put in a position that they would have occupied had they acquired sufficient stamps to qualify for the State contributory pension.

In my opinion, if not in the opinion of others, these were labour camps. The women were used specifically as free or cheap labour for these institutions. I remember listening to an interview with a women in England who had been in a home in Donegal. They were all young women and kids. They were making wedding dresses, christening dresses and communion dresses. Their nimble fingers were very important because they were able to work with fine material and produce fine dresses. That woman said the reason that home closed was because that work no longer made money. Cheaper dresses were being made elsewhere. These children were used as slave labour and they ought to be recognised. The State should make every effort to make it as simple as possible for these women to be able to access their basic medical needs without restriction. The Minister should come back to the House with revised legislation. We will support Second Stage and I hope the Minister will at least meet with these women and explain to them what the Government intends to do with regard to this legislation.

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