Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I acknowledge the Deputy's ongoing advocacy and work in this area of rare diseases. The Deputy is aware of and inputting to the new rare disease strategy. We are improving the current reimbursement process through publication and implementation of the Mazars report and the recommendations therein, adding €30 million in new development funding for medicines this year. In parallel, we are developing the rare disease strategy. Through the combination of the approval and assessment process and the new strategy, we will seek better results in Ireland. To caveat, there are reports suggesting Ireland is far down the league but there are other reports that put us further up. Nonetheless, we must always strive to have the quickest possible access to the greatest number of medicines.

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