Gerry Adams (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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428. To ask the Minister for Health if he will review the case of a person (details supplied) in County Louth who has been waiting more than ten months for cataract surgery; if hospitals may send individuals for treatment abroad in circumstances where they have been waiting in excess of the eight-month maximum wait time target; if this person may be considered for such action; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46254/14]

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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The Treatment Abroad Scheme (TAS), operated by the HSE, provides for the referral of patients to another EU/EEA country or Switzerland for a treatment that is either not available within the State or not available within a time normally necessary for obtaining it in Ireland, taking account of his/her current state of health and the probable course of the disease.

There are strict qualifying criteria to access this Scheme which are set out in EU Regulations and Department of Health Guidelines (please see ). Referral for care under the TAS is restricted to referral by an Irish based consultant who is treating the patient in a public capacity. Authorisation for treatment under the TAS must be sought and granted prior to availing of the treatment; otherwise the patient will be liable for the costs.

The National Waiting List Management Policy, A standardised approach to managing scheduled care treatment for in-patient, day case and planned procedures, January 2013,has been developed to ensure that all administrative, managerial and clinical staff follow an agreed national minimum standard for the management and administration of waiting lists for scheduled care. This policy, which has been adopted by the Health Service Executive, sets out the processes that hospitals are to implement to manage waiting lists.

As this is a service matter, I have asked the HSE to respond to you directly. If you have not received a reply from the HSE within 15 working days please contact my Private Office and my officials will follow the matter up.