Billy Kelleher (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail)
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382. To ask the Minister for Health if the necessity for a change of pessary will be included in the GMS to compensate general practitioners for carrying out this procedure in an effort to reduce the lengthening waiting list; if the pessary will be provided on the GMS in view of the fact that it is provided free at hospitals; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5606/18]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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The Deputy will be aware of the ongoing review of the GMS and other publicly funded contracts involving GPs, and that discussions to progress this work are underway.

Since 2015, negotiations have resulted in a number of service developments including the provision of free GP care to under 6's and over 70's, the introduction of a Diabetes Cycle of Care for adult GMS patients with Type 2 Diabetes and enhanced supports for rural GPs.

The agenda of issues to be addressed in future engagements with GP representatives is broad and it is not possible to specify each and every treatment or procedure which may need to be considered. It will however be important, in my view, that contractual arrangements are such as will accommodate evolving medical practice and enable care to be provided in the lowest-complexity setting possible.

There are a small number of pessaries on the Reimbursement List which release active ingredients to treat gynaecological conditions such as thrush and are time limited in nature. However, devices used as part of gynaecological procedures would not be encompassed by the Reimbursement List. In order for a product to be supplied on the community drugs schemes, the supplier must apply to the HSE for reimbursement approval and the product must meet published criteria.