Alex White (Dublin South, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Senator for giving me the opportunity to inform the House of the steps being taken to address this important matter, in which he has very much taken a lead.

Mandatory indemnity cover for medical practitioners is necessary. As the Senator may be aware, in 2009 the Minister, Deputy James Reilly, then in opposition, introduced a Private Members Bill in the Dáil on the issue, but it was not enacted at the time. When he took office, he instructed the Department to commence drafting a Bill to achieve this aim. Last year the Government approved the heads of the Medical Practitioners (Professional Indemnity) (Amendment) Bill 2013, which will provide for what the Senator is proposing by way of medical indemnity insurance requirements. The purpose of the Bill is to amend the Medical Practitioners Act 2007 to make it mandatory for registration purposes that all medical practitioners engaged in the practise of medicine have adequate medical indemnity insurance cover. Drafting of the Bill is at an advanced stage and officials of the Department are in consultation with the relevant stakeholders, including the Medical Council, the State Claims Agency and representatives of indemnity providers, on an ongoing basis.

Under the Bill the Medical Council will be given the power to refuse registration if a practitioner does not have adequate indemnity cover. The council will also have the power to remove a practitioner from the register where indemnity cover is not maintained. The continued maintenance of indemnity cover will be confirmed by the practitioner at the time of his or her annual retention of registration, a practice similar to provisions that obtain in other professions. It will be the responsibility of each medical practitioner to establish that he or she has the required professional indemnity.

The legislation will provide for the State Claims Agency to assist the Medical Council in setting out indicative or minimum levels of cover, having regard to the medical specialty involved and the procedures being undertaken by each medical practitioner. It is the intention that the draft legislation will be at a high or enabling level. The Medical Council will subsequently specify the necessary detail, by the provision of guidance and-or rules, in accordance with the statutory powers given to it in its establishing legislation. A key issue in the drafting process is to ensure this provision will be robust in order that the council will be empowered to ensure all registered medical practitioners will have appropriate and adequate indemnity insurance cover.

The Bill is on the A list of the Government's legislative programme for the summer 2013 parliamentary session. However, following recent meetings between officials of the Department and the Parliamentary Counsel and having regard to the issues raised by the Parliamentary Counsel at these meetings, it is now unlikely that the Bill will be finalised before the Dáil summer recess. However, it is still the intention to have the Bill finalised and published as soon as possible following the recess.

I acknowledge the contribution of the Senator in advancing the objective of having mandatory indemnity cover for practising doctors. The House will be aware that earlier this year the Senator introduced a Private Members Bill on this issue. The objective of that Bill was almost identical to the Bill being progressed and developed by my Department.

However, there were a number of important areas where the Department had some reservations on the approach being taken. Due to the many similarities in both Bills it has been arranged for Parliamentary Counsel to take account of Senator Burke's Bill in finalising the text of the Government's Bill.

I am pleased to have had the opportunity to address the House today and I would like to assure the Senator and the House that the Minister, Deputy James Reilly, is committed to bringing proposals to Government for its consideration of this matter at the earliest possible.