Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The Minister of State is probably familiar with the TV programme "Breaking Bad". The Minister of State may recall that around the time it was first broadcast, a meme was doing the rounds known as "Breaking Bad UK edition". It showed the character Walter, having been diagnosed with incurable lung cancer, asking "This will bankrupt me, how will I pay my bills?" The doctor replied, "The government will pay your bills; what kind of barbaric society would allow a person's health to hinge on their wealth?" While we may not have a system that is quite as invidious, inequitable and, in some respects, vicious as the American healthcare system, which deprives people of their livelihoods and prosperity, our system is not too hot either.

I welcome the motion proposed by the Social Democrats. It clearly reflects that there is a huge impact on people's income when they have a diagnosis of cancer. This is completely wrong. This is one of the most stressful worrying and frightening times of a person's life. Very often the person is out of work and his or her income is hugely affected. Quality of life, including that of the person's family, is hugely affected. At the same time, the person must deal with the impact of all the additional costs and if the person cannot afford to pay those costs, the prospect of debt collectors coming to pursue those costs. That is absolutely unacceptable and in some ways it may not be so far from the invidious US model.

Cancer patients are charged €80 per inpatient visit. Many of them have to attend hospital ten times or more per year, meaning charges of €800, with some as high as €1,000. This motion seeks to abolish this €80 charge. Sinn Féin agrees with this proposal. On top of those costs, we could throw in the costs of parking, food and all the rest of it.

Another issue that we encounter in our office concerns primary medical certificates for cancer patients. The radical decision by the board involved in this area, which recently came to light, clearly illustrated the frustration its members felt. A constituent who contacted our office had to have her arm amputated because she was diagnosed with clear cell sarcoma. She needs to adapt her car to maintain her independence, which is vitally to her quality of life. The woman does not qualify for the primary medical certificate because she has only had one arm amputated rather than both arms. That is absurd and disgusting.

Ireland is the only country in Europe that does not cover the costs of prosthetics for people who require them.

This woman will require three prostheses in the shape of her arm during the year. She is covered for one prosthetic from Cork University Hospital and her health insurance covers her for up to €2,000 per annum. That will not come near the cost of one, let alone two, prostheses. That is another example of the impact our healthcare system has.

Returning to the example I gave and that meme, the NHS is not perfect but it is a system based on the public good. That is what we need to work towards. We need an Irish national healthcare service that is available free at the point of access so people are not deprived of care, delayed care or broken financially because they fall sick. As the meme indicated, what kind of barbaric society would allow a person's healthcare to hinge on their wealth? We are not in the same position as the United States - there is no question about that - but we have a long way to go if we are to have a healthcare system that is fair, humane and does not ensure that wealth is the key determinant of how healthy one is.

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