John McGuinness (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)
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595. To ask the Minister for Health if half an hour's home help per day will be provided for a person (details supplied). [41248/20]

Anne Rabbitte (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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The HSE provides a range of assisted living services including Home Support Services to support individuals to maximise their capacity to live full and independent lives.

Home Support Services are provided either directly by the HSE or through a range of voluntary service providers. The majority of specialised disability provision (80%) is delivered through non-statutory sector service providers.  

Services are accessed through an application process or through referrals from public health nurses or other community based staff. Individuals’ needs are evaluated against the criteria for prioritisation for the particular services and then decisions are made in relation to the allocation of resources.  Resource allocation is determined by the needs of the individual, compliance with prioritisation criteria, and the level of resources available. As with every service there is not a limitless resource available for the provision of home support services and while the resources available are substantial they are finite. In this context, services are discretionary and the number of hours granted is determined by other support services already provided to the person/family. 

As this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the deputy directly, as soon as possible.