Pádraig O'Sullivan (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Today marks the first meeting of the patients' forum to support the development of the national rare disease plan. As the Taoiseach knows, more than 300,000 people in Ireland have a rare disease. I welcome the initiative the Minister for Health has shown in reviewing and committing to implementing the recommendations of the Mazars report and in instigating the review of the national rare disease plan. That is a cause for optimism. Nonetheless, as we found out this year, there is no designated funding for new drugs for rare diseases and the plan depends on savings being made elsewhere. I am concerned about how the recommendations of the rare disease plan, when it is published, will be implemented in the future. In preparing for budget 2025 in the months to come, I impress on the Taoiseach the need to make an allocation to ensure whatever recommendations are made can be implemented.

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