Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I agree with Deputy Ó Caoláin that it would be ideal if everyone had a medical card, but that is not the case. We have a means-tested system and people are assessed according to their means, not their diagnoses. In the case of discretionary medical cards, the assessment can take into account the burden of the illness and the cost of medical needs, but that is an individual assessment. After an expert group reported on this matter not too long ago, most people accepted that this was the best way forward.

Regarding the adverse reactions to which the Deputy referred, the Health Products Regulatory Authority, HPRA, had received 936 reports of adverse reactions and events by 27 November. It should be borne in mind that this was out of 100,000 people who had received the vaccine. The majority of the reports received by the HPRA have been consistent with the expected pattern of short-term adverse side effects for the use of any vaccine as described in the product information. The most frequently reported side effects are local redness and swelling at the point of injection and fever. These are usually mild and temporary reactions to any kind of vaccine. Fainting has occurred after vaccination with Gardasil, especially in adolescents, and less commonly reported side effects from Gardasil include pain in the injected arm site, bruising, itchiness, red hives and, on occasion, wheezing. Like most vaccines, severe allergic reactions are rare.

The fact that a suspected adverse reaction has been reported does not necessarily mean that the medicine or vaccine has caused the observed effect, as it may also be caused by the disease being treated, a new disease that the patient has developed around the same time or by another medicine that the patient is taking. Further data are usually needed to complete the picture.

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