Bríd Smith (Dublin South Central, People Before Profit Alliance)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

266. To ask the Minister for Health the number of persons an injecting room at a centre (details supplied) is expected to serve. [40155/17]

Catherine Byrne (Dublin South Central, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

On 25 August 2017, the HSE published an invitation on the Government's eTenders website for suitably qualified and experienced service providers to submit tenders to provide a medically supervised injecting centre in Dublin City Centre area on a pilot basis. Tenders must be submitted to the HSE by 25 September 2017. The HSE anticipates that the contract will be awarded by 1 November 2017. The initial contract will be for an 18-month pilot phase with an evaluation at 6 months and again at 18 months.

The provider and the proposed location will be known once the evaluation of the tender submissions is completed by end of October 2017.

As the tender process is still underway, it is not appropriate for me to comment on individual organisations who may be included in the tender process.

It is estimated that it will cost in the region of €1.5m a year to run the SIF. The HSE has been allocated €750,000 in 2017 to set up the facility before the end of the current year.