Results 35,361-35,380 of 49,836 for speaker:Stephen Donnelly

Written Answers — Department of Health: Health Services (3 Feb 2021)

Stephen Donnelly: As the number of patients who saw a consultant in 2019 and 2020, 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: Cancer Services (3 Feb 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: Health Services (3 Feb 2021)

Stephen Donnelly: Patient charges, including the statutory in-patient daily charge, are a key element of the overall funding envelope of the Irish health system and are taken into account when agreeing the Annual Estimates and the subsequent preparation of the annual National Service Plan. These charges typically include: - Out-patient charges; - Emergency Department charges; - Daily in-patient charges; and -...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Covid-19 Pandemic (3 Feb 2021)

Stephen Donnelly: I propose to take Questions Nos. 620 and 893 together. As the Deputy will be aware, Ireland is currently at Level 5 of Resilience and Recovery 2020-2021: Plan for Living with COVID-19. At Level 5, people are asked to stay at home as much as possible unless they have a "reasonable excuse" for leaving.  The Regulations providing for these measures are set out in S.I. No....

Written Answers — Department of Health: Pharmaceutical Sector (3 Feb 2021)

Stephen Donnelly: As the Deputy will be aware the Regulated Professions (Health and Social Care) (Amendment) Act 2020 is a large and complex Act which has been several years in development.  Officials in my Department are liaising with the five health professional regulatory bodies to progress commencement of the Act's remaining provisions at the earliest opportunity.  The Pharmaceutical Society...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Health Services Staff (3 Feb 2021)

Stephen Donnelly: As we are aware, an agreement was reached by parties at the Workplace Relations Commission in October 2018, in relation to a process of pay restoration for staff employed by 50 pilot agencies.  Pay restoration commenced in April 2019 with an annual pay increase of up to €1,000.  Any outstanding balance would be paid in two equal amounts in 2020 and 2021, if due. The...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Parking Charges (3 Feb 2021)

Stephen Donnelly: I propose to take Questions Nos. 625 and 633 together. The Programme for Government makes a commitment to introduce a cap on the maximum daily charge for patients and visitors at all public hospitals where possible, and to introduce flexible passes in all public hospitals for patients and their families. My Department and the HSE are currently engaging on this issue.

Written Answers — Department of Health: Telecommunications Services (3 Feb 2021)

Stephen Donnelly: The Department of Health is currently engaged in a commercial agreement with Three Ireland, to procure an anonymised mobility dataset for the sole purpose of informing and supporting the COVID19 response. This data is helpful in understanding mobility associated with the pandemic and response and it is one of a large number of datasets analysed and used as part of the Covid-19 response...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Vaccination Programme (3 Feb 2021)

Stephen Donnelly: The Government is committed to the timely implementation of a COVID-19 immunisation programme. The National COVID-19 Vaccination Strategy, which was prepared by the High-Level Task Force on COVID-19 Vaccination, was signed off by Cabinet on 15 December 2020. The vaccines will be rolled out in three phases - the initial roll out, a mass ramp-up and open access. The highest priority groups,...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Vaccination Programme (3 Feb 2021)

Stephen Donnelly: I propose to take Questions Nos. 628 and 799 together. The COVID-19 Vaccine Allocation Strategy sets out a provisional list of groups for vaccination. The Strategy was developed by the National Immunisation Advisory Committee (NIAC) and my Department, endorsed by the National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET), and approved by Government on 8 December 2020.  Vaccine allocation is a...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Covid-19 Pandemic (3 Feb 2021)

Stephen Donnelly: I propose to take Questions Nos. 629, 643 and 644 together. The public health advice relating to COVID-19 is kept under continuous review by the National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET), by my Department and the Government.  The NPHET reviews international developments as a component of their overall examination of the evolving epidemiology of Covid-19 and are informed by the...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Midwifery Services (3 Feb 2021)

Stephen Donnelly: Under the GMS scheme, a subsidy is available to GPs towards the cost of employing a practice nurse, provided the nurse is currently registered on the General Nurses Division or the Public Health Nurses Division of the Register of the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland (NMBI). Practice nurses carry out a wide range of patient care under the direction of the GP, such as vaccinations,...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Covid-19 Pandemic (3 Feb 2021)

Stephen Donnelly: Since 16 January passengers arriving to Ireland from all overseas countries have been required to present evidence of a negative/not-detected test taken no more than 72 hours before arrival. Checks are made by border officials upon arrival and those that do not present a test result are committing an offense. Only international transport workers (in aviation, maritime and road haulage...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Covid-19 Tests (3 Feb 2021)

Stephen Donnelly: The HSE has adopted RNA PCR as the gold standard test for diagnosing Covid-19. This is consistent with international best practice. The World Health Organization (WHO) and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) recommend that nucleic acid amplification tests, such as RT-PCR, should be used to detect suspected, active SARS-CoV-2 infection. The advice of the WHO and the...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Hospital Charges (3 Feb 2021)

Stephen Donnelly: The Health Act 1970 (as amended) provides that all persons ordinarily resident in the country are eligible, subject to certain charges, to public in-patient hospital services including consultant services. All persons, irrespective of illness or condition, accessing public in-patient (including day case) services in a public hospital are liable for the statutory in-patient daily charge of...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Covid-19 Pandemic (3 Feb 2021)

Stephen Donnelly: The exceptional circumstances faced by medical practitioners during the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in a change in how GP services are delivered.  At this time, patient in-person contact with GPs has been curtailed as much as possible to help prevent the spread of the virus. Nurse and doctor advice is provided over the phone where appropriate, and only patients who are clinically...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Nursing Staff (3 Feb 2021)

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

Written Answers — Department of Health: Hospital Staff (3 Feb 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 Facilities (3 Feb 2021)

Stephen Donnelly: As this is a service matter I have referred this question to the HSE for direct reply.

Written Answers — Department of Health: Medical Aids and Appliances (3 Feb 2021)

Stephen Donnelly: Under the Health (Pricing and Supply of Medical Goods) Act 2013, the HSE has statutory responsibility for the administration of the community drug schemes; therefore, the matter has been referred to the HSE for attention and direct reply to the Deputy.