Niall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail)
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146. To ask the Minister for Health if a matter regarding the case of a person (details supplied) will be addressed; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2108/19]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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As the Deputy will be aware the Treatment Abroad Scheme (TAS) allows public patients to be referred to another EU/EEA country for treatment that is not available in Ireland, subject to qualifying criteria. A patient's Irish based consultant is responsible for referring the patient abroad under the terms of the TAS, after having exhausted all treatment options including tertiary care within Ireland.

I am very much aware of the concerns of patients and parents of young children receiving treatments under the TAS in the UK for what are in many cases very complex conditions. I also note that Brexit may bring additional distress to patients and their families who are dealing with complex treatments.

By way of some assurance, I can say that both the Irish and UK Governments are committed to working to maintain arrangements for access to healthcare for both Irish and UK citizens to publicly funded health services.

You should also be aware that as part of a whole of Government response to Brexit, the Department of Health is working to ensure a comprehensive and coordinated set of preparations to ensure continuity of health services post-Brexit. This work involves the Department and the HSE and other agencies in engaging in intensive Brexit preparedness and contingency planning.

A key priority for the Government is to ensure that insofar as possible there is minimum disruption to health services and that essential services, such as the TAS, are maintained on a cross-Border, all-island and Ireland-UK basis.