Results 13,241-13,260 of 40,330 for speaker:Leo Varadkar

Committee on Health and Children: Select Sub-Committee on Health: Estimates for Public Services 2015
Vote 38 - Health (Revised) (5 Feb 2015)

Leo Varadkar: I will not comment on individual cases because I do not have access to people's private records. Let me reiterate that somebody might not have a medical card but may have a doctor visit card, a long-term illness card and access to aids and appliances, in which case giving the person a medical card would potentially save money, believe it or not, because he or she would be entitled to less....

Committee on Health and Children: Select Sub-Committee on Health: Estimates for Public Services 2015
Vote 38 - Health (Revised) (5 Feb 2015)

Leo Varadkar: The current capital envelope runs to 2016. Negotiations are under way for the next capital envelope, which will run from 2016 to 2020. Needless to say, a major part of our ask in health is a significant increase in the capital budget for long-term care. A total of 14 priority locations have been identified and they are being progressed through planning to shovel-ready status. I will give...

Committee on Health and Children: Select Sub-Committee on Health: Estimates for Public Services 2015
Vote 38 - Health (Revised) (5 Feb 2015)

Leo Varadkar: I am afraid I cannot comment on ophthalmology specifically in the south but I will ask the HSE to give the Deputy information on that. We are developing a new oral health policy that will fit into the Healthy Ireland framework and is being led by the chief dental officer. The initial research coming back is that Ireland's oral health is improving. Children have fewer cavities than they...

Committee on Health and Children: Select Sub-Committee on Health: Estimates for Public Services 2015
Vote 38 - Health (Revised) (5 Feb 2015)

Leo Varadkar: I thank Deputies for their contributions and for highlighting particular areas that require more resources and investment. Anything that the committee can do to recommend more money for my Department would be much appreciated.

Protection of Life in Pregnancy (Amendment) (Fatal Foetal Abnormalities) Bill 2013: Second Stage [Private Members] (6 Feb 2015)

Leo Varadkar: I would like to acknowledge the work undertaken by Deputy Clare Daly in the preparation and publication of this amendment to the Protection of Life During Pregnancy Act, which is before the House this morning. The Bill provides for lawful termination of pregnancy following a diagnosis of fatal foetal abnormality which is defined in this Bill as "a medical condition suffered by the foetus...

Protection of Life in Pregnancy (Amendment) (Fatal Foetal Abnormalities) Bill 2013: Second Stage [Private Members] (6 Feb 2015)

Leo Varadkar: I do not have much more to add to what I said previously but I want to pick up on a few points made by Deputies. Deputy Wallace referred to the possibility that 30% of people in prison are wrongly convicted. I do not know if that is true. I certainly hope it is not, but a miscarriage of justice can be reversed, and people can be released. Terminations are not reversible. One of the...

Protection of Life in Pregnancy (Amendment) (Fatal Foetal Abnormalities) Bill 2013: Second Stage [Private Members] (6 Feb 2015)

Leo Varadkar: Essentially, what they are asking for is a hard case, and they are looking for that to happen again-----

Protection of Life in Pregnancy (Amendment) (Fatal Foetal Abnormalities) Bill 2013: Second Stage [Private Members] (6 Feb 2015)

Leo Varadkar: -----which is not a view I would take. The President can refer a Bill to the Supreme Court, but that is a different matter. For whatever reason, the property tax managed to make its way into this debate with both Deputies Wallace and Murphy saying the Government did not have a mandate to introduce a property tax. That is not quite true. A property tax, albeit in the form of a site...

Protection of Life in Pregnancy (Amendment) (Fatal Foetal Abnormalities) Bill 2013: Second Stage [Private Members] (6 Feb 2015)

Leo Varadkar: Deputy Wallace should read the exact paragraph on that in our party's manifesto, which will explain it better for him. Sections 1 and 2 of the Bill state that fatal foetal abnormality means a medical condition suffered by a foetus such that it is incompatible with life outside the womb. No speakers other than Deputy Boyd Barrett mentioned any specific conditions but I will mention two...

Protection of Life in Pregnancy (Amendment) (Fatal Foetal Abnormalities) Bill 2013: Second Stage [Private Members] (6 Feb 2015)

Leo Varadkar: What we do in the Dáil always is debate two laws: the law that is before us and the law of unintended consequences. That is in response to Deputy Coppinger's comment, "So what".

Protection of Life in Pregnancy (Amendment) (Fatal Foetal Abnormalities) Bill 2013: Second Stage [Private Members] (6 Feb 2015)

Leo Varadkar: The question we have to address here is the meaning of the term "incompatible with life". Does it mean that the baby can be born alive, which seems to be what some of the speakers opposite have implied? As Deputy Tuffy pointed out, if it does cover babies that can be born alive it is unconstitutional and even if it does not the constitutional protection to the unborn also applies to the...

Protection of Life in Pregnancy (Amendment) (Fatal Foetal Abnormalities) Bill 2013: Second Stage [Private Members] (6 Feb 2015)

Leo Varadkar: That was not a missed miscarriage. Deputy Coppinger does not know what she is talking about. It is quite bad. A missed miscarriage is a case where the foetus is dead in the womb - no heartbeat and no brain activity. It happens all the time in our maternity hospitals, and those dead foetuses are removed by dilatation and curettage, D and C. The Deputy does not understand the legislation...

Protection of Life in Pregnancy (Amendment) (Fatal Foetal Abnormalities) Bill 2013: Second Stage [Private Members] (6 Feb 2015)

Leo Varadkar: The proponents opposite are clearly confused. They are making different arguments and believe different issues can arise from this Bill, and that is exactly what we always do with this issue. We pass legislation or amend our Constitution without fully understanding the consequences of that and what we are actually proposing. It is not defined well enough, and it needs to be much better...

Protection of Life in Pregnancy (Amendment) (Fatal Foetal Abnormalities) Bill 2013: Second Stage [Private Members] (6 Feb 2015)

Leo Varadkar: No exceptions at all.

Written Answers — Department of Health: Magdalen Laundries (10 Feb 2015)

Leo Varadkar: I propose to take Questions Nos. 386 and 388 together. The Health (Amendment) Act 1996 provides for the making available without charge of certain health services to persons who contracted hepatitis C in the State from a blood product or blood transfusion. In his report, Mr Justice Quirke recommended, inter alia, that legislation be introduced to give effect to his recommendation on the...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Health Services Staff (10 Feb 2015)

Leo Varadkar: I have asked the HSE to respond to the Deputy directly on the 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: Vaccination Programme (10 Feb 2015)

Leo Varadkar: I propose to take Questions Nos. 390 and 418 together. The immunisation programme in Ireland is based on the advice of the National Immunisation Advisory Committee (NIAC). The NIAC is a committee of the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland comprising of experts in a number of specialties including infectious diseases, paediatrics and public health. The committee's recommendations are...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Hospital Waiting Lists (10 Feb 2015)

Leo Varadkar: In relation to the particular patient query raised by you, 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 with them.

Written Answers — Department of Health: Hospital Waiting Lists (10 Feb 2015)

Leo Varadkar: The National Waiting List Management Policy, A standardised approach to managing scheduled care treatment for in-patient, day case and planned procedures, January 2014,has been developed to ensure that all administrative, managerial and clinical staff follow an agreed national minimum standard for the management and administration of waiting lists for scheduled care. This policy, which has...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Nursing Staff Remuneration (10 Feb 2015)

Leo Varadkar: Under the Haddington Road Agreement (HRA), nurses and midwives participating in the Graduate Nurse Programme are paid 85% of the first point of the Staff Nurse/Midwifery Scale in the first year, €23,129, and 90% in the second year, €24,490. Slightly higher scales apply for Mental Health Nurses, €23,667 in the first year and €25,059 in the second year, maintaining...