Mark Ward (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

There are 700,000 people living in Ireland with neurological conditions. Of these, 9,000 people are living with multiple sclerosis, MS. I am one of the 9,000, having been diagnosed 15 years ago. I and our health spokesperson, Deputy Cullinane, met MS Ireland recently and it has a vision to maximise physiotherapy treatment through a national physiotherapy service across all nine community healthcare organisations, CHOs. Its research shows that delaying and reducing disability due to MS could reduce costs to the health system annually by €19 million. This would be for a relatively low investment. MS Ireland has written to the Minister for Health and would welcome the opportunity to engage in a national level planning discussion with his Department. Does the Minister for Finance believe that the €880,000 this would cost would be value for money? Will he ask his colleague, the Minister for Health, if he will engage with MS Ireland?

See this speech in context