Results 2,281-2,300 of 11,402 for speaker:Mary Butler

Ceisteanna Eile - Other Questions: Mental Health Services (21 Sep 2023)

Mary Butler: The Deputy hit the nail on the head about multi-annual funding. I have secured 800 posts since I took over this role. We are currently recruiting for clinical programmes this year. Whether the money was secured in budget 2021, 2022 or 2023, that does not really matter when a child is in front of one of these clinicians. What really matters is that money was provided for ongoing services...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Mental Health Commission (21 Sep 2023)

Mary Butler: Recommendation No. 1 relates to the immediate and independent regulation of CAMHS by the Mental Health Commission. As I said, a key element of the Mental Health Bill will be expansion of the commission's regulatory remit to include community residences - about 1,200 people live in community residences all over the country - and services, including CAMHS services. That has been agreed and...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Mental Health Commission (21 Sep 2023)

Mary Butler: A clear process is in place for the development of the mental health Bill. Recommendation No. 2, which follows on from No. 1, states that the implementation of these recommendations must be monitored by the Mental Health Commission. The commission intends to publish a yearly report on progress of implementation. While I welcome the focus on service improvement in CAMHS, it is the role of...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Health Service Executive (21 Sep 2023)

Mary Butler: Budget 2023 saw a record allocation of €24 billion to the health Vote. This increased funding reflects the Government's ongoing commitment to resourcing the HSE to deal with a range of pressures and includes a range of new investments to deliver on the Sláintecare reform agenda. As part of the planning for service delivery for 2023, extensive engagements took place between...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Health Service Executive (21 Sep 2023)

Mary Butler: As I said, based on the figures that have been made available to me today, the current deficit was €642 million-----

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Health Service Executive (21 Sep 2023)

Mary Butler: I know that. I am answering the question. The current deficit was €642 million to the end of June. That is the publicly available figure at the moment. I can tell Deputy Shortall what actions are being taken to address the HSE deficit. An initial minimum target reduction of 10% on agency costs has been brought in, with effect from August, across both the acute and community...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Health Service Executive (21 Sep 2023)

Mary Butler: The black hole of €2 billion referred to by the Deputy has not been verified. As I stated, the figure up to the end of June-----

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Health Service Executive (21 Sep 2023)

Mary Butler: Thank you, a Leas-Cheann Comhairle. The deficit has been verified at €642 million up to the end of June. As I stated, the HSE is taking significant actions to address this. For example, a State claims task force has been established to reduce the overall cost of claims.

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Health Service Executive (21 Sep 2023)

Mary Butler: I do not think this is a back-and-forth discussion. Deputy Shortall got her opportunity to ask a question.

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Health Service Executive (21 Sep 2023)

Mary Butler: Extensive efforts are being made to recruit across all sectors. Deputy Shortall needs to be fair as well. The main overrun is across acute services and emergency departments. Spending on disability services, mental health and older people is not over budget at all. The over budget spending is in the acute sector where the demand is overwhelming for many hospitals.

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Mental Health Commission (21 Sep 2023)

Mary Butler: The Mental Health Commission report is a welcome contribution to a common objective of improving CAMHS services. As the Deputy will be aware, and as I have said previously, when Dr. Susan Finnerty and the Mental Health Commission informed me last year that they were about to look at CAMHS, I asked them to expand their review. I also funded what was necessary in this case. I welcome the...

Ceisteanna ar Sonraíodh Uain Dóibh - Priority Questions: Mental Health Commission (21 Sep 2023)

Mary Butler: I will address a couple of points. The Deputy stated the waiting list had doubled. It has, and there are now 3,900 children on the waiting list, although it reduced in July. What the Deputy did not say is that there were 33% more referrals to CAMHS during the Covid-19 period, that the teams saw 21% more children and that there were 225,000 appointments last year. It is important to put...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Covid-19 Pandemic (21 Sep 2023)

Mary Butler: The Taoiseach has stated that a comprehensive evaluation of how the country managed COVID-19 will provide an opportunity to learn from our experiences in dealing with a pandemic. It will include a review of the whole-of-government response to the pandemic and how we might do better and be in a stronger position if another pandemic or other similar type of event were to occur. It has been...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Care Services (21 Sep 2023)

Mary Butler: The Government remains committed to supporting people to age in place at home in their community with access to wraparound supports, including day care and dementia-specific day care services and Meals on Wheels. In May, I announced the allocation of €5.25 million funding for Meals on Wheels and day centres to organisations across the country. In addition to this a further...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Mental Health Services (21 Sep 2023)

Mary Butler: Mental Health Commission's report into the provision of CAMHS services across this country has been welcomed by the Government, the Department of Health and the HSE. The publication of the associated reports of the individual nine Community Health Organisation (CHOs) reports are both a timely and welcome contribution to our shared common objective of improving the quality and safety of all...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Mental Health Services (21 Sep 2023)

Mary Butler: The Government’s clear commitment to enhancing mental health services is shown by significant mental health funding increases in recent years. I would note that 2023 saw a record budget for mental health of €1.2bn. Budget 2023 delivered almost €58m in additional funding, and a further €10m in once-off funding for much needed minor capital works across the Mental...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Medicinal Products (21 Sep 2023)

Mary Butler: The Health Service Executive (HSE) has statutory responsibility for decisions on pricing and reimbursement of medicines under the community drugs schemes, in accordance with the Health (Pricing and Supply of Medical Goods) Act 2013. The HSE is committed to providing access to as many medicines as possible, in as timely a fashion as possible. The HSE robustly assesses applications for...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Mental Health Services (21 Sep 2023)

Mary Butler: The Deputy will be aware that the previous Mental Health policy " A Vision for Change" has been replaced by the current widely agreed policy "Sharing the Vision 2020-2030. This aims to improve all aspects of CAMHS care, including CAMHS in-patient capacity nationally. "Sharing the Vision" promotes new service responses for CAMHS overall and greater flexibility for more person centered care at...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Mental Health Services (21 Sep 2023)

Mary Butler: 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: Mental Health Services (21 Sep 2023)

Mary Butler: Under the Mental Health Act 2001, the Mental Health Commission (MHC) is required to register, inspect and regulate all approved centres, including CAMHS approved centres across the country, with inspections taking place at least once a year. The Government values the independent role of the MHC, which is to promote high standards and good practice in mental health services. I...