Results 39,161-39,180 of 46,235 for speaker:Simon Harris

Written Answers — Department of Health: Drugs Payment Scheme Data (16 Sep 2016)

Simon Harris: Under the Health (Pricing and Supply of Medical Goods) Act 2013, the HSE has statutory responsibility for the administration of the primary care schemes, including the community drug schemes; therefore, the matter has been referred to the HSE for reply to the Deputy.

Written Answers — Department of Health: Primary Care Centres (16 Sep 2016)

Simon Harris: As this is a service issue, this question has been referred to the Health Service Executive for direct reply to the Deputy.

Written Answers — Department of Health: HIQA Reports (16 Sep 2016)

Simon Harris: One of our commitments in the Programme for Government is to improve the quality of food in our hospitals. I welcome the publication last May of the HIQA Report of the review of nutrition and hydration care in public acute hospitals. The report has been designed to present the findings so that hospitals can share identified areas of good practice and develop opportunities for improvement in...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Medical Card Eligibility (16 Sep 2016)

Simon Harris: The Health (Alteration of Criteria for Eligibility) (No. 2) Act 2013 sets out that, when a person attains the age of 70, the medical card income limits are €500 gross income per week for a single person and €900 gross income per week for a couple. The Deputy will be aware that persons aged 70 or older, who are assessed as ineligible under the gross income thresholds, may...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Hospital Appointments Status (16 Sep 2016)

Simon Harris: Under the Health Act 2004, the Health Service Executive (HSE) is required to manage and deliver, or arrange to be delivered on its behalf, health and personal social services. Section 6 of the HSE Governance Act 2013 bars the Minister for Health from directing the HSE to provide a treatment or a personal service to any individual or to confer eligibility on any individual. The scheduling...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Hospital Appointments Status (16 Sep 2016)

Simon Harris: Under the Health Act 2004, the Health Service Executive (HSE) is required to manage and deliver, or arrange to be delivered on its behalf, health and personal social services. Section 6 of the HSE Governance Act 2013 bars the Minister for Health from directing the HSE to provide a treatment or a personal service to any individual or to confer eligibility on any individual. The...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Organ Donation (16 Sep 2016)

Simon Harris: Legislation to introduce an opt-out register for organ donation will be developed in line with the Programme for Government. Under the proposed system, consent will be deemed unless the person has, while alive, registered his/her wish not to become an organ donor after death. However, it is proposed that, even though consent is deemed, the next-of-kin will always be consulted prior to...

Written Answers — Department of Health: General Medical Services Scheme Administration (16 Sep 2016)

Simon Harris: The Health Service Executive operates the General Medical Services (GMS) scheme, which includes medical cards and GP visit cards, under the Health Act 1970, as amended. Under the provisions of the Health Act 1970 (as amended), eligibility for health services in Ireland is based primarily on residency and means. The Act provides that persons who are unable, without undue hardship, to arrange...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Respite Care Services Provision (16 Sep 2016)

Simon Harris: I propose to take Questions Nos. 1040 and 1089 together. The Government is committed to providing services and supports for people with disabilities which will empower them to live independent lives, provide greater independence in accessing the services they choose, and enhance their ability to tailor the supports required to meet their needs and plan their lives. This commitment is...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Respite Care Services (16 Sep 2016)

Simon Harris: The Government is committed to providing services and supports for people with disabilities which will empower them to live independent lives, provide greater independence in accessing the services they choose, and enhance their ability to tailor the supports required to meet their needs and plan their lives. This commitment is outlined in the Programme for Partnership Government, which is...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Blood Donations (16 Sep 2016)

Simon Harris: Having reviewed the Irish Blood Transfusion Service (IBTS) report regarding a change in deferral policies for blood donation by men who have sex with men, I have accepted its recommendation to reduce the current lifelong ban from donating blood to a one-year deferral. I have also accepted its recommendation to defer those with a history of a sexually transmitted infection for five years...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Nursing Home Services (16 Sep 2016)

Simon Harris: The Nursing Homes Support Scheme (NHSS) is a system of financial support for people who require long-term nursing home care. Participants contribute to the cost of their care according to their means while the State pays the balance of the cost. The NHSS covers the cost of the standard components of long-term residential care which are: - Nursing and personal care appropriate to the...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Home Help Service Provision (16 Sep 2016)

Simon Harris: Home support services across the country are being stretched by demands from more people, and for more hours in the evenings and at weekends, all of which cost more. Activity in the first quarter of 2016 was ahead of the same period last year as efforts continued to alleviate pressure on the acute hospital system. I am delighted that the Government has been able to respond to this...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Mobility Allowance (16 Sep 2016)

Simon Harris: I propose to take Questions Nos. 1045, 1046 and 1340 together. Conscious of the reports of the Ombudsman in 2013 regarding the legal status of both the Mobility Allowance and Motorised Transport Grant Schemes in the context of the Equal Status Acts, the Government decided to close both schemes. Both schemes remain closed. The Government also decided that monthly payments will continue to be...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Speech and Language Therapy (16 Sep 2016)

Simon Harris: I have asked the HSE to respond to the Deputy directly on this matter.

Written Answers — Department of Health: Health Strategies (16 Sep 2016)

Simon Harris: The National Advisory Committee on Bioethics was established by the then Minister for Health, Dr. James Reilly, in March 2012. The task of this Committee is to advise the Minister for Health on the ethical and social implications of scientific developments in human medicine and healthcare. In particular, this includes: 1) Providing advice in the form of expert reports on priority issues of...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Assisted Human Reproduction (16 Sep 2016)

Simon Harris: In February of this year my colleague Deputy Leo Varadkar, the then Minister for Health, announced his intention to provide public funding for assisted human reproduction (AHR) treatment in conjunction with the introduction of specific legislation in this area. In order to determine the most appropriate funding model for AHR in the State, based on existing evidence, Minister Varadkar engaged...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Health Services (16 Sep 2016)

Simon Harris: The Department of Health supports research in health through the Health Research Board (HRB). The HRB is a statutory body under the aegis of the Department of Health and is the lead agency in Ireland supporting and funding health research. The HRB has informed me that it supports research on Mesenchymal stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells. In the past ten years, it has invested...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Medical Card Eligibility (16 Sep 2016)

Simon Harris: The Deputy will be aware that the Programme for Government states that "We will extend the entitlement to a medical card for all children in receipt of the Domiciliary Care Allowance (DCA) in Budget 2017. Approximately 10,000 children would benefit from this initiative". In early July, I meet with representatives of Our Children's Health. At that meeting, and in the debate on the Private...

Written Answers — Department of Health: Assisted Human Reproduction (16 Sep 2016)

Simon Harris: As the Deputy will be aware, in February 2015, the Government gave its approval to my colleague Deputy Leo Varadkar, the then Minister for Health, to draft a General Scheme of legislative provisions dealing with assisted human reproduction (AHR) and associated research. This comprehensive piece of legislation will regulate a range of practices for the first time, including: gamete (sperm or...