Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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I am fully committed to supporting our population screening programmes which are a valuable part of our health service, enabling early treatment and care for many people, and improving the overall health of our population.

It is important to be aware that any decisions about changes to our national screening programmes, or the introduction of new programmes, such as screening for vasa previa, will be made on the advice of our National Screening Advisory Committee (NSAC) which was established in 2019. This independent expert group considers and assesses evidence in a robust and transparent manner, and against internationally accepted criteria. It is important we have rigorous processes in place to ensure our screening programmes are effective, quality assured and operating to safe standards, and that the benefits of screening outweigh the harms.

The Committee's first Annual Call for proposals for new screening programmes or changes to our existing programmes, received a significant response with a total of 53 submissions received, including submissions relating to antenatal screening. Submissions were received from various sources and are now undergoing consideration by the committee. The NSAC intends to publish its full work programme later this year once it has considered all proposals submitted.