Louise O'Reilly (Dublin Fingal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 7:

In page 12, between lines 16 and 17, to insert the following:“(d) data from health services relating to alcohol related presentations at health facilities,”.

The primary aim of this legislation is to reduce the harm caused by alcohol to individuals, families, communities and society as a whole. One of the key indicators of the level of harm caused by alcohol misuse is alcohol-related presentations at health facilities. There are three alcohol-related deaths in Ireland every single day. Alcohol currently places a huge burden on our health service, taking up an estimated 1,500 hospital beds in this country every night. According to the Health Research Board, HRB, €1.5 billion was spent on hospital discharges in 2012. This does not include the significant costs incurred by our emergency departments, which often bear the brunt of our excessive alcohol consumption .

We believe that in any consideration of the Bill or sections thereof the Minister should therefore have regard to the data from the health services relating to alcohol presentations at health facilities, as these can provide us with important routine information on the health harms due to alcohol, as well as the impact on the health services themselves. I understand that the Minister has included sections related to health and social factors but we believe that the collation of these data is particularly relevant. Alcohol-related incidents and presentations from alcohol-related illness have a significant cost to our health service in resources, beds and staff. Given that we are legislating and making a public policy decision on alcohol, we believe that these considerations must be taken into account.

I urge those Deputies who have an interest in this to think long and hard before they interrupt or try to delay this legislation. This is an amendment that I have discussed extensively with men and women who are working in our hospitals and are on the front line providing counselling and other services, as well as with those who have suffered from alcohol harm and their families. I ask anybody who intends to make a contribution to please keep those people in mind.

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