John Curran (Dublin Mid West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I know some Members of this House have an ideological viewpoint that is opposed to the NTPF. I look at it from a pragmatic point of view. It delivers a service for people who are currently waiting on lists. I think the Minister should consider being more ambitious in terms of what is available and that we need to consider extending the services offered under it. For example, we could look at the role it could play in terms of providing services for children. By that, I mean children who require diagnosis, be it in terms of occupational therapy or speech and language therapy and some initial treatments. Some of those waiting lists for young children are unacceptably long. I believe a targeted approach from the NTPF could have a role to play here and should be examined.

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