Results 21-40 of 45,774 for speaker:Micheál Martin

Seanad: Opticians (Amendment) Bill 2002: Committee and Remaining Stages. (25 Feb 2003)

Micheál Martin: Under the broader Act, I believe the opticians' board would potentially have a role in that area. To which section is the Senator referring?

Seanad: Opticians (Amendment) Bill 2002: Committee and Remaining Stages. (25 Feb 2003)

Micheál Martin: I apologise.

Seanad: Opticians (Amendment) Bill 2002: Committee and Remaining Stages. (25 Feb 2003)

Micheál Martin: It does.

Seanad: Opticians (Amendment) Bill 2002: Committee and Remaining Stages. (25 Feb 2003)

Micheál Martin: It is in connection with the carrying out of professional duties.

Seanad: Opticians (Amendment) Bill 2002: Committee and Remaining Stages. (25 Feb 2003)

Micheál Martin: The section also refers to a person who "is of good character and repute and has not been declared bankrupt". That would obviously cover it.

Seanad: Opticians (Amendment) Bill 2002: Committee and Remaining Stages. (25 Feb 2003)

Micheál Martin: No, because they do not work in hospitals. They are private contractors.

Seanad: Opticians (Amendment) Bill 2002: Committee and Remaining Stages. (25 Feb 2003)

Micheál Martin: They are private contractors. The list the Senator read out consists of people who work in hospitals.

Seanad: Opticians (Amendment) Bill 2002: Committee and Remaining Stages. (25 Feb 2003)

Micheál Martin: No, they are not. The Act is very specific.

Seanad: Opticians (Amendment) Bill 2002: Committee and Remaining Stages. (25 Feb 2003)

Micheál Martin: When I was here last, I made the point that the Bill was not the legislative mechanism through which the three named drugs would be allowed; they would be allowed through amendments to medicinal regulations. The Bill removes the absolute prohibition on the utilisation of some drugs by optometrists included in the parent Act. From the outset we recognised that unanimity on the issue of the use...

Seanad: Opticians (Amendment) Bill 2002: Committee and Remaining Stages. (25 Feb 2003)

Micheál Martin: I am not an expert on drugs.

Seanad: Opticians (Amendment) Bill 2002: Committee and Remaining Stages. (25 Feb 2003)

Micheál Martin: We sought advice on these three drugs from our chief pharmacists following my meeting with the College of Ophthalmologists and before Second Stage.

Seanad: Opticians (Amendment) Bill 2002: Committee and Remaining Stages. (25 Feb 2003)

Micheál Martin: That drug is not included in the legislation.

Seanad: Opticians (Amendment) Bill 2002: Committee and Remaining Stages. (25 Feb 2003)

Micheál Martin: There is scarcely a drug on the market that does not have a range of contraindications or side-effects listed on each packet. That is the other side of the coin. Every drug on the market comes with a list of warnings about side effects. We need to be balanced in our approach. We have taken advice on this and limited the number of drugs to three. Originally, it was suggested that six or seven...

Seanad: Opticians (Amendment) Bill 2002: Committee and Remaining Stages. (25 Feb 2003)

Micheál Martin: As I stated in my Second Stage address to the House, I recently met representatives of the College of Ophthalmologists when the president of the college outlined the difficulties which many ophthalmologists have with the use of the word "treatment" in section 12(b) which inserts a new subsection (4). I gave an undertaking that my Department would re-examine this area. Having considered the...

Seanad: Opticians (Amendment) Bill 2002: Committee and Remaining Stages. (25 Feb 2003)

Micheál Martin: This Bill, when enacted, will be subject to a simultaneous exercise with the medicinal regulations Act, which is the reason for the absence of a timeframe. We do not generally have timeframes.

Seanad: Opticians (Amendment) Bill 2002: Committee and Remaining Stages. (25 Feb 2003)

Micheál Martin: Yes and no. Question put and agreed to. SECTION 14.

Seanad: Opticians (Amendment) Bill 2002: Committee and Remaining Stages. (25 Feb 2003)

Micheál Martin: The Senator's amendment states 2003.

Seanad: Opticians (Amendment) Bill 2002: Committee and Remaining Stages. (25 Feb 2003)

Micheál Martin: I accept the amendment. Amendment agreed to. Section 14, as amended, agreed to. Title agreed to. Bill reported with amendments and received for final consideration. Question proposed: "That the Bill do now pass."

Seanad: Opticians (Amendment) Bill 2002: Committee and Remaining Stages. (25 Feb 2003)

Micheál Martin: I thank Senators for their contributions. We had a very good Second Stage debate. The importance of debate is that we tease out every aspect of a Bill and the area with which it deals. We have done well in this regard and, as the Bill moves to the other House, I will reflect on the debate which took place in the Seanad. We should not forget that there was broad agreement on key points, such...

Seanad: Health Insurance (Amendment) Bill 2003: Second Stage. (26 Feb 2003)

Micheál Martin: I am pleased to speak on the Second Stage of the Health Insurance (Amendment) Bill 2003. This is a short Bill aimed at facilitating the early submission of a draft risk equalisation scheme for approval by the House, as required under the Health Insurance Acts 1994 and 2001. The need for the further provisions set out in the Bill arises from consultations held with the Health Insurance...