Results 12,641-12,660 of 40,330 for speaker:Leo Varadkar

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: Organ Donation (11 Dec 2014)

Leo Varadkar: I thank the Senator for raising the issue of the steps being taken to boost organ donation and transplantation rates in Ireland. I was very pleased that, in the face of difficult economic circumstances, the Government arranged for the HSE to allocate an additional €2.9 million to organ donation and transplantation in 2014. This additional investment is a clear demonstration of our...

Seanad: Adjournment Matters: Organ Donation (11 Dec 2014)

Leo Varadkar: I had some conversations with my predecessor, when he was Minister for Health, but the issue we discussed was the symbol to appear on the new driving licence. For various reasons, mostly regulatory, we agreed that if someone agrees to donate organs it is reflected in a code on the driving licence. What Senator Daly says makes a lot of sense to me. I am due to meet the organ donation team...

Seanad: Health Insurance (Amendment) Bill 2014: Second Stage (15 Dec 2014)

Leo Varadkar: I am pleased to address the House today on Second Stage of the Health Insurance (Amendment) Bill 2014. As Senators will be aware the Bill recently passed through all Stages in the Dáil unopposed. Risk equalisation is a necessary support underpinning our community-rated health insurance market. The main purpose of the Bill is to specify the risk equalisation credits, the rate of the...

Seanad: Health Insurance (Amendment) Bill 2014: Second Stage (15 Dec 2014)

Leo Varadkar: I thank Senators for their contributions to the debate. Senator O'Donovan welcomed the Bill and accurately pointed out that it will not be a panacea or a utopian solution to the cost of health insurance but that it will help. My timeframe would be a little more ambitious than the Senator's; I hope we will start to see measurable increases in the number of people with health insurance next...

An Bille um an gCeathrú Leasú is Tríocha ar an mBunreacht (An Ceart chun Féinriarachta Pearsanta agus Sláine Colainne) 2014: An Dara Céim [Comhaltaí Príobháideacha] - Thirty-fourth Amendment of the Constitution (Right to Personal Autonomy and Bodily Integrity) Bill 2014: Second Stage [Private Members] (16 Dec 2014)

Leo Varadkar: The Private Members' Bill before the House proposes to do two things - namely, to delete the Eighth Amendment to the Constitution and, in so doing, remove the constitutional right to life afforded both to the mother and to the unborn child, and to insert a new provision acknowledging the citizen's right to personal autonomy and bodily integrity. It also affords us another opportunity to...

Topical Issue Debate: Accident and Emergency Services Provision (16 Dec 2014)

Leo Varadkar: I thank Deputies Billy Kelleher and Finian McGrath for raising this issue. Many emergency departments are currently experiencing overcrowding, although Beaumont is one of the worst. It is a busy time of the year, with increased numbers presenting for treatment and requiring extended observation or admission. This is compounded by a rise in winter-related illnesses. As well as larger...

Topical Issue Debate: Accident and Emergency Services Provision (16 Dec 2014)

Leo Varadkar: There is no pretence. I am very aware that there is a serious problem with overcrowding, trolleys and delayed discharges in our hospitals. In many ways, they are symptoms of a more systemic problem within our hospitals. Warnings are not solutions. Solutions require plans, money, action and co-operation. It was mentioned that there are approximately 800 delayed discharges. The additional...

Topical Issue Debate: Accident and Emergency Services Provision (16 Dec 2014)

Leo Varadkar: -----but it will be a very high priority for me next year. I will not promise that I can magic it away through action and money. It will require a persistent focus over a long period of months.

Topical Issue Debate: Alcohol Sales Legislation (16 Dec 2014)

Leo Varadkar: I thank Deputy Mitchell O'Connor for raising this important matter and acknowledge her long-standing interest in this important social problem. Ireland has a serious problem in that we drink too much alcohol, even if consumption now is falling. Furthermore, when we drink, we tend to binge-drink. Ireland has the second-highest rate of binge-drinking in the world and this pattern of drinking...

Topical Issue Debate: Alcohol Sales Legislation (16 Dec 2014)

Leo Varadkar: While one spends a lot of time in this Chamber disagreeing with people, I could not agree more with Deputy Mitchell O'Connor. There is absolutely no doubt but that alcohol is a contributory factor in domestic violence, as well as an excuse for it on some occasions, which is unacceptable. In my previous position as Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, much work was put into road safety...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Tobacco Control Measures (16 Dec 2014)

Leo Varadkar: As the Deputy will be aware, Tobacco Free Ireland, Ireland’s policy on smoking, sets a target for Ireland to be tobacco free by 2025. In practice, this will mean a smoking prevalence rate of less than 5%. The two key themes underpinning the report are protecting children and the denormalisation of smoking. The introduction of standardised packaging of tobacco is just one of over...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Tobacco Control Measures (16 Dec 2014)

Leo Varadkar: As the Deputy will be aware, Government approval was received on 19thNovember 2013 to proceed with drafting the Public Health (Standardised Packaging of Tobacco) Bill 2013. The legislation has now been passed by the Seanad and Second Stage of the Bill concluded in the Dáil on 2nd October 2014. The Bill was formally notified to the Commission and to Member States under the EU Technical...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Nursing Staff Contracts (16 Dec 2014)

Leo Varadkar: I have asked the HSE to respond to the Deputy directly on this matter. If you have not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days please contact my Private Office and they will follow up the matter with them.

Written Answers — Department of Health: Cancer Screening Programmes (16 Dec 2014)

Leo Varadkar: I recently announced the extension of the BreastCheck screening programme to women aged 65 to 69 years of age. Planning for this is underway and screening of the extended cohort will commence towards the end of 2015. The age extension will be expanded on an incremental basis and it will be fully rolled out in 2021. The additional eligible population is approximately 100,000 and, when...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Orthodontic Service Waiting Lists (16 Dec 2014)

Leo Varadkar: The scheduling of appointments for patients is a matter for the hospital to which the patient has been referred. As this is a service matter, I have asked the HSE to respond to you directly. If you have not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days please contact my Private Office and my officials will follow the matter up.

Written Answers — Department of Health: Hospital Waiting Lists (16 Dec 2014)

Leo Varadkar: As this is a service matter, I have asked the HSE to respond to you directly. If you have not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days please contact my Private Office and my officials will follow the matter up.

Written Answers — Department of Health: Hospital Services (16 Dec 2014)

Leo Varadkar: As this is a service matter, I have asked the HSE to respond to you directly. If you have not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days please contact my Private Office and my officials will follow the matter up.

Written Answers — Department of Health: Hospital Accommodation Provision (16 Dec 2014)

Leo Varadkar: I propose to take Questions Nos. 428 and 429 together. As these are service matters, I have asked the HSE to respond to you directly. If you have not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days please contact my Private Office and my officials will follow the matter up.

Written Answers — Department of Health: Ambulance Service Staff (16 Dec 2014)

Leo Varadkar: The HIQA review of pre-hospital emergency care services reported that some managers within the National Ambulance Service (NAS) had indicated that they did not have the competencies required for their roles and were not provided with job descriptions. I am advised by the HSE that management posts in the HSE and NAS are advertised, with required experience, competencies and job requirements...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Departmental Meetings (16 Dec 2014)

Leo Varadkar: I propose to take Questions Nos. 434 and 435 together. The number of Management Advisory Committee (MAC) meetings in each of the years 2011, 2012, 2013, and to date in 2014, is set out in the table. Details of attendees for each of these meetings were set out in my answer of 26 November. The Minister for Health, and Ministers of State, would meet regularly with members of the Department's...