Catherine Byrne (Dublin South Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I am speaking on behalf of the Minister, who had to leave. I thank all of those who contributed to the debate and I have taken note of a lot of the issues that were raised, in particular community pharmacists. Many of them have dedicated their lives to working in communities, have gotten to know people and their families and relate to them on a one-to-one basis.

We are all fully aware of the issues raised in the motion and the seriousness of the matter. My colleague, the Minister for Health, Deputy Simon Harris, has spoken in detail and has set out the history of events and the process and measures undertaken to ensure that it was resolved to the benefit of taxpayers and those patients in need of phased dispensing. He also set out the investigation and activities that are under way in the HSE.

Marketplaces are becoming larger, faster and more complex. The increasing complexity and variations of business activities places much greater demands on resources and the capacity of State agencies that engage with commercial providers. As legislators, our duty is to ensure that the HSE is in a position to meet the challenges that all public bodies face in procuring services from private contractors. Probity and governance in the health service are key priorities for the HSE and Government. The importance of investing in probity and control functions is proved by the successful actions undertaken by the PCRS as part of its review and auditing process in this and related cases.

The PCRS is increasing its staffing and oversight capacity and I am pleased to see that this plan is already at the development stage. Of course, the scale of its activities means that staffing resources are not enough on their own. In line with outgoing developments of audits and probity, the PCRS and the Department of Health are considering proposals to improve validation for phased and other dispensing claims.

In addition, the PCRS is working with stakeholders on improving electronic interaction with contractors. This will reduce workloads for pharmacists and improve verifications for the HSE as well as providing for patient care by professional pharmacists. The care and safety of the patients of community pharmacists is, at all times, a Government priority.

I welcome the fact that the HSE is not resting on its laurels and continues to improve the PCRS audit function, with a number of new inspectors and analysts recruited this year. This gives the HSE an increasing capacity in community pharmacy, dental, optical and general practice to analyse data for all contractors to carry out on-site inspections across the country and recruit this claim to payments.

The HSE has done an excellent job in identifying and addressing the issues that have emerged around phased dispensing. The PCRS investigation was very complex and time-consuming and the diligence of the staff in the PCRS in pursuing this investigation should be recognised. This and other actions mean that the PCRS probity activities in 2016 will release €20 million in savings. Not only that, where there are scarce resources they will be promptly directed towards them, as many people have stated during the debate. The patients who need resources will also benefit, as well as clinicians and those who provide services for our patients in hospital.

I am confident that an increased level of oversight will make it easier for proper and professional engagement between all parties in providing services to our patients. I encourage all Deputies to acknowledge this and the work done by the HSE and the PCRS on behalf of the taxpayer. Mistakes have been made but they have been rectified. I thank everybody who has contributed to the debate.

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