Results 23,981-24,000 of 49,836 for speaker:Stephen Donnelly

Written Answers — Department of Health: Departmental Expenditure (2 Dec 2021)

Stephen Donnelly: My Department's headquarters is located at Miesian Plaza, Baggot Street, Dublin 2. Below is the total amount expended on electricity and heating from 2017 - 2021. My Department moved from Hawkins House to Miesian Plaza in July 2018.  Year Electricity Heating  2021 € 281,932.17 € 89,692.01 ...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Departmental Properties (2 Dec 2021)

Stephen Donnelly: My Department's offices at Miesian Plaza, Baggot Street are located in one of the most advanced buildings in Ireland with regard to ventilation systems. I am informed that the fresh air changeover rate for the building is 14 litres per person per second which exceeds average values for modern buildings of between 8 – 10 litres per person per second. Air handling systems provide for...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Tobacco Control Measures (2 Dec 2021)

Stephen Donnelly: At national level a number of evaluations of the harms and benefits of vaping products have been carried out in recent years. In 2017, the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) delivered a health technology assessment (HTA) of the clinical effectiveness and cost effectiveness of pharmaceutical and non-pharmaceutical smoking cessation products and services. In relation to the...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Tobacco Control Measures (2 Dec 2021)

Stephen Donnelly: I propose to take Questions Nos. 232 and 233 together. Adult smoking trends are monitored via the Healthy Ireland Survey in order to measure success against the objective of Tobacco Free Ireland, the national tobacco control policy, to achieve a smokefree Ireland by 2025. Overall smoking prevalence declined by 6% between 2015 and 2019 indicating that increasing numbers of people are...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Hospital Services (2 Dec 2021)

Stephen Donnelly: As this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the deputy directly, as soon as possible.

Written Answers — Department of Health: National Children's Hospital (2 Dec 2021)

Stephen Donnelly: The New Children’s Hospital Project, comprising the main hospital at St James’s campus in Dublin, and two paediatric outpatient and urgent care centres at Connolly and Tallaght hospitals, is a Government priority. A major milestone was reached in July 2019, when the Urgent Care Centre at the Connolly Hospital campus opened, providing a new model of ambulatory care for children....

Written Answers — Department of Health: Hospital Services (2 Dec 2021)

Stephen Donnelly: As the Health Service Executive is responsible for the delivery of public healthcare infrastructure projects, I have asked the HSE to respond to you directly in relation to this matter. 

Written Answers — Department of Health: Primary Care Services (2 Dec 2021)

Stephen Donnelly: As this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.

Written Answers — Department of Health: Medicinal Products (2 Dec 2021)

Stephen Donnelly: The Health (Pricing and Supply of Medical Goods) Act 2013 gives full statutory powers to the HSE to assess and make decisions on the reimbursement of all medicines taking account of a range of objective factors, clinical benefits, cost effectiveness and expert opinion as appropriate. HSE decisions on which medicines are reimbursed by the taxpayer are made on objective, scientific and economic...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Health Services (2 Dec 2021)

Stephen Donnelly: As this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the deputy directly, as soon as possible.

Written Answers — Department of Health: Dental Services (2 Dec 2021)

Stephen Donnelly: As this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.

Written Answers — Department of Health: Hospital Procedures (2 Dec 2021)

Stephen Donnelly: It is recognised that waiting times for scheduled appointments and procedures have been impacted in the last twenty months as a direct result of the COVID-19 pandemic. While significant progress was made in reducing waiting times from June 2020 onwards, the surge in Covid-19 cases in the first quarter of 2021 and the associated curtailment of acute hospital services, coupled with the...

Written Answers — Department of Health: National Maternity Hospital (2 Dec 2021)

Stephen Donnelly: The Government is committed to the development of the new National Maternity Hospital (NMH) planned for the St Vincent’s University Hospital Campus at Elm Park, as set out in the Programme for Government. As the Deputy will be aware, the proposed corporate and clinical governance arrangements for the new National Maternity Hospital were set out in the Mulvey Agreement, which provides...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Health Services (2 Dec 2021)

Stephen Donnelly: My Department and the National Cancer Control Programme systematically study the impact of Covid-19 on cancer services through data monitoring and monthly review meetings. The number of people coming forward with cancer concerns decreased significantly during Covid Wave 1 from March to May 2020. However, the degree of resilience built up in cancer services, through staff commitment, revised...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Covid-19 Pandemic (2 Dec 2021)

Stephen Donnelly: COVID-19 brought a range of challenges to our health service . It is recognised that waiting times for scheduled appointments and procedures have been impacted in the last twenty months as a direct result of the COVID-19 pandemic and more recently as a result of the ransomware attack. While significant progress was made in reducing waiting times from June 2020 onwards, the surge in Covid-19...

Health (Amendment) (No. 3) Bill 2021: Committee and Remaining Stages (2 Dec 2021)

Stephen Donnelly: The comments were not on the amendment, which is what I want to address. For clarity, the regulations will provide for up to 72 hours for a PCR test and 48 hours for an antigen test. We have had a 72-hour requirement for PCR tests for some time. Regardless, therefore, of the regulations we bring in tonight, the current rules are that, for those 12 years or older, someone who is...

Health (Amendment) (No. 3) Bill 2021: Committee and Remaining Stages (2 Dec 2021)

Stephen Donnelly: Yes, the stipulation is not around where the test was taken but when. We can all find cases where it will not work terribly well. We can all find circumstances where a person could, technically, get a PCR test here before leaving, go to London-----

Health (Amendment) (No. 3) Bill 2021: Committee and Remaining Stages (2 Dec 2021)

Stephen Donnelly: -----for a day and come home. You could not go to South Africa because you would have to home quarantine for ten days. In extremis, we can all find things in the legislation that do not necessarily work. We can also say there are people who are fully vaccinated who still end up in hospital, but that does not mean we do not provide vaccination. None of the measures are perfect. They are...

Health (Amendment) (No. 3) Bill 2021: Committee and Remaining Stages (2 Dec 2021)

Stephen Donnelly: I beg your pardon. Yes, we should. It is late. I will not accept the amendment, but for the right reasons. What we want to achieve will be covered in the regulations. As far as I am concerned, the rationale is laid out in the regulations and the legislation, which relates to an imperative, time-sensitive medical reason. A termination of pregnancy absolutely qualifies, unambiguously. We...

Health (Amendment) (No. 3) Bill 2021: Committee and Remaining Stages (2 Dec 2021)

Stephen Donnelly: The points on masks and antigen testing are not relevant to the amendment. You cannot win. The Deputy stood up in this House time and again to say we need antigen tests and asked why we did not have them. When we bring them in-----