Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 98: To ask the Minister for Health and Children if she will direct the Health Service Executive to engage in meaningful dialogue with pharmacist representatives with a view to ensuring the uninterrupted and ongoing availability of the quality and scale of services heretofore available to the public throughout the country; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9233/08]

Martin Ferris (Kerry North, Sinn Fein)
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Question 123: To ask the Minister for Health and Children if she will report on her role in the critical impasse regarding community pharmacy; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9288/08]

Charlie O'Connor (Dublin South West, Fianna Fail)
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Question 195: To ask the Minister for Health and Children the action she has taken to assure the public in respect of the ongoing dealings between the Health Service Executive and Irish Pharmaceutical Union; if her attention has been drawn to the concern of communities in respect of their local pharmacies; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9485/08]

Mary Harney (Dublin Mid West, Progressive Democrats)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 98, 123 and 195 together.

The Government is firm in its view that the wholesale mark-up paid on the price of drugs should be reduced to a level that is fair to both taxpayers and wholesalers. The existing mark-up in the range of 15% to 17.6% is neither reasonable nor sustainable. The Government also supports the HSE's decision to pay an 8% mark-up from 1 March, and 7% from 1 January 2009.

However, I am concerned, in particular, to support pharmacies which have a high proportion of medical card patients, where a dispensing fee of €3.27 applies for most transactions. Many of these pharmacies are in rural or inner city areas and provide an important social and health service.

With my support, the HSE has indicated it is prepared to offer a higher fee, of no less than €5 per item dispensed, to community pharmacists, on the basis of an interim contract which would be essentially the same as the existing contract. This contract is being offered on a voluntary basis and community pharmacists can opt to remain on their existing contract if they so wish.

I met with the Irish Pharmaceutical Union recently and heard their point that there should be an independent assessment of the fees offered. I have now established an Independent Body to begin work immediately to assess an interim, fair community pharmacy dispensing fee of at least €5 to be paid for the medical card scheme, the DPS and other community drug schemes.

This Body is being chaired by Seán Dorgan, former Head of IDA Ireland. It has been asked to make its recommendations by the end of May 2008. Its recommended fee level, subject to Government approval, will be backdated to 1 March 2008.

The Independent Body held its first meeting on 25th February 2008 and has invited submissions. Both the HSE as the contracting body and the IPU as the representative organisation for community pharmacists, along with other stakeholders, will be entitled to make submissions to the Independent Body, on issues of concern to them. The Independent Body will also be entitled to engage whatever outside expertise it requires to assist it with its task.

The HSE has put a comprehensive contingency plan in place at local level in the event of the withdrawal of service by community pharmacists, including information notices in newspapers and an information helpline, open from 8am to 8pm Monday to Friday. In response to a written request to all 1600 community pharmacy contractors from the HSE, to date one community pharmacy has confirmed its intention to withdraw services under the present pharmacy contract. A second pharmacy has signalled an intention to withdraw services, but this remains unconfirmed. There are no changes planned to the operation of the GMS and community drugs schemes and all patients continue to receive their entitlements in the usual way.