Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I am sure the Deputy would not wish to misrepresent me because that is certainly not what I said. I said that as a result of investing in and opening the new theatre at the Royal Victoria Eye and Ear Hospital, an additional 1,150 cataract procedures will be performed there by the end of the year. This means that 1,150 people will have the gift of their sight restored, which is obviously a great relief to them.

The Deputy is correct on the broader point. When it comes to eyes and ophthalmology, many of the procedures are simple procedures that can be done quite quickly. That is why we are targeting the resources of the NTPF at cataract procedures. In addition to the NTPF continuing to do that, I also want to see a much quicker migration of some of these services to primary care, which makes sense from a cost point of view and much more importantly from the patient's point of view. I will come back to the Oireachtas shortly with proposals in that regard.

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