Michael Comiskey (Fine Gael)

I ask the Minister for Health, Deputy James Reilly, to look at the HSE and the way it treats people, particularly those who are waiting for hip operations. I have been contacted in the past number of days by people in Sligo who are waiting for such operations. They are on a public list and therefore must wait between 20 and 24 months. If they were lucky enough to have €20,000, they could get it done within three or four weeks. This is very unfair.

I refer to the weekend television programme about children in need of dental treatment. A young girl with gum disease would have to have her teeth extracted rather than filled because, under the rules, all one is allowed on a medical card is two fillings per year. In the case of serious dental problems, this should be increased and the teeth of young people should be saved.