Catherine Ardagh (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I raise again the issue of hyperemesis gravidarum, the medical term for a condition that arises during pregnancy whereby women become severely ill. It is a condition that involves severe sickness and vomiting. Famously, the Duchess of Cambridge, if that his her title, suffered from it. There was a huge campaign last year but to date nothing has been done by the HSE. The campaign is to have the drug pyridoxine-doxylamine, more commonly known as Cariban, made available on our drugs payments scheme.

I ask the Leader to ask the Minister for Health, Deputy Stephen Donnelly, to prioritise this issue and outline what immediate actions he is taking to ensure that women with hyperemesis do not face further financial hardship in accessing the basic HSE-recommended drug. The drug, which currently costs about €45 per week, needs to be taken over the course of the woman's pregnancy. That adds up to a large sum money but the drug is still not available on the scheme.

Women with morning sickness have been treated in a particular way since the 1960s. We are all aware of the scandal around thalidomide, a drug which caused malformations in 10,000 children. We are now forgetting about these women again. Although 1% of pregnant women are affected, we have to do much more. The HSE needs to include this drug on the refund scheme.