Diarmuid Wilson (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy McGrath, to the House and thank the Minister for his contribution. I speak on this debate on behalf of my Seanad colleague, Senator Swanick.

Fianna Fáil will fully support Senator Norris's motion calling for the expansion of genetic testing in Ireland. Early diagnosis, intervention and prevention are beneficial to both the health of babies and the health of the budget by obviating lengthy and expensive treatments. Ireland is already behind other EU countries in the number of screening tests carried out on babies. Newborn screening is the most important and common type of genetic testing. Newborns are required to be tested for certain gene abnormalities because care and treatment can begin right away. In Ireland newborn blood spot screening for six conditions is offered to all infants on heel prick samples collected between 72 and 120 hours after birth. A newborn blood spot screening does not result in a diagnosis; it shows only whether or not a baby is at high risk of having one or more of the conditions screened for. As the Minister and Senators Norris and Colm Burke said in their contributions, Italy introduced expanded newborn screening, ENS, for all newborns and on August 2016 saw the passing of legislation envisaging that all newborns in Italy undergo ENS free of charge a few hours after birth. The test enables early identification of about 40 genetic metabolic disorders, difficult to diagnose yet easy to detect through ENS. Treatments and cures for such diseases already exist and their early use during the first days after birth, before the symptoms are visible, can significantly increase a child's quality of life or even prevent death. Early intervention through drugs and tailored diets can limit irreversible damage to the brain and other organs which may lead to cognitive and physical disabilities that are often severe or even lead to the baby's death. Estimates indicate that one newborn out of 1,500 is affected by a disorder detectable through screening.

I have quite a bit more written in this speech but, quite frankly, it would be repetitive to read it out. It has already been said by the contributors so far, so I do not intend to read the rest of the speech. I welcome the Martin family and thank them for the efforts they are making in this regard. Again, we will fully support Senator Norris's motion and we look forward to the measures it proposes coming into law fairly soon.