Seanad debates

Wednesday, 25 June 2003

Council Regulation on Procedures for amending the Sirene Manual: Referral to Joint Committee. - Health Service Reform: Statements (Resumed).

 

The last thing I would mention is the drugs monitoring scheme and the use of generic drugs. I am particularly glad the Minister of State, Deputy Tim O'Malley, is here because he has a professional background as a pharmacist and we have talked about it outside this House. I have read the Forfás report on embedding the pharmo-chemical industry in Ireland and wondered if the health service was not contributing to it by the fact that the Government pays very high prices to pharmaceutical companies for drugs, which are much cheaper in other countries. The Government could do much in this regard. Of course we could buy generic drugs, although they would probably have to be branded generics. The Minister is aware, I am sure, that in Brazil, a very big producer of pharmaceutical drugs, 20 patients died recently from some sort of injectable radiological compound that was being made under totally unsuitable conditions. Six patients lost their sight owing to the effects of an eye gel which was being used in operations, probably for detached retina or something like that. We do have to be sure we have proper quality medicines.

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