Maureen O'Sullivan (Dublin Central, Independent)
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97. To ask the Minister for Health the funding available for the treatment abroad scheme for 2012, 2013 and to date in 2014; the criteria for deciding the person availing of the scheme and the types of treatment and procedures accepted for funding; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42732/14]

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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The Treatment Abroad Scheme, operated by the Health Service Executive, provides for the referral of patients to another EU/EEA country or Switzerland for a treatment not available in Ireland or where undue delay is experienced in accessing necessary treatment in Ireland.

Under the Scheme, the HSE provides for the cost of approved treatments abroad through the issue of form E112. Where an application meets the qualifying criteria the funding is approved and that decision to approve is not based on budgetary implications.

The health authority of these countries issues invoices to the HSE for care provided to those approved patients. These invoices are received in arrears; often 2 or 3 years in arrears. Therefore the figures detailed below are the costs as currently available to the HSE and are likely to change as invoices for previous years are received and paid and should be interpreted in that context.

In 2012, 791 applications were approved at a cost of over €7.5 million.

In 2013, 640 applications were approved at a cost of over €7.8 million.

In 2014 to date, 500 applications have been approved at a cost of over €9.4 million.

Treatment must be medically necessary, must meet the patient’s needs and may not be an experimental treatment. The hospital outside the State must accept the form E112. The application must be assessed and a determination given before that patient goes abroad. The HSE is not required to approve a treatment which is not available in Ireland where an equivalent treatment which will meet the patient’s needs is available.

The most common treatment types that patients accessed under the Scheme are Deep Brain Stimulation, Cardiac Transplantation, Sap Scan and Paediatric Liver Transplantation.