Naoise Ó Cearúil (Kildare North, Fianna Fail)
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555. To ask the Minister for Health the measures being taken to improve diagnostic pathways and treatment for those suffering with Lyme disease; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [28583/25]

Jennifer Carroll MacNeill (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael)
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As this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the deputy directly, as soon as possible.

Ruth Coppinger (Dublin West, Solidarity)
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556. To ask the Minister for Health to consider expanding the current criteria for publicly funded IVF to include those who require IVF treatment but are not experiencing fertility issues; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [28584/25]

Jennifer Carroll MacNeill (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael)
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The Model of Care for Fertility was developed by the Department of Health in conjunction with the HSE’s National Women & Infants Health Programme (NWIHP) to ensure that fertility-related issues are addressed through the public health system at the lowest level of clinical intervention necessary.

This Model of Care comprises three elements, starting in primary care (i.e., GPs) and extending into secondary care (i.e., six Regional Fertility Hubs located across the country) and, where necessary, AHR (assisted human reproduction) treatment (e.g., IVF (in-vitro fertilisation) and ICSI (intra-cytoplasmic sperm injection)), with patients being referred onwards through structured pathways.

Phase One of the roll-out of the Model of Care involved the establishment, at secondary care level, of six Regional Fertility Hubs within maternity networks covering the entire country. This means that a significant proportion of individuals presenting with fertility-related issues are managed at this level of intervention. Patients are referred by their GPs to their local Regional Fertility Hub, which provides a range of treatments and interventions. These Hubs have been fully operational for a number of years now.

Phase Two of the roll-out of the Model of Care relates to the introduction of AHR treatment, including IVF, provided through the public health system at tertiary level.

Appropriate funding has been made available to support access to AHR treatment via HSE-approved private providers. As well as IVF and ICSI, this allocation is also being used to provide IUI (intrauterine insemination), which can, for certain cohorts of people, be a potentially effective, yet less complex and less intrusive form of treatment.

Referrals for publicly-funded, privately-provided AHR treatment commenced in September 2023. Criteria prospective patients should meet in order to access fully-funded AHR services were agreed by the Department and the HSE and subsequently approved by Government in July 2023.

The criteria were agreed following consultation with experts in the field of reproductive medicine and include limits in respect of the age of the intending birth mother, body mass index (BMI) and the number of children a couple already have. They are very much in keeping with those applied in other jurisdictions, even though in most European countries, for instance, such treatments are only partially funded and require often significant out-of-pocket payments by patients.

More information is available on the HSE website in respect of the publicly-funded AHR treatment initiative at:

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or on public fertility services more generally at:

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Over 2,300 couples have been referred to date by a Reproductive Specialist Consultant for AHR treatment following extensive investigations and/or secondary level treatment within the HSE-run Regional Fertility Hubs. Furthermore, the Hubs have successfully and directly managed thousands more patients presenting with fertility-related issues who have been referred by their GP. Not all couples experiencing fertility challenges actually require such advanced and invasive interventions as IVF. The terms of the publicly-funded AHR treatment initiative are underpinned by the primary policy principle of supporting couples experiencing fertility issues.

Decisions in respect of any proposed changes to the access criteria and/or the range of services provided through the publicly-funded AHR treatment initiative require further extensive consultation between Department of Health officials, colleagues in the HSE and also with relevant specialists in the field of reproductive medicine. This process is underway.

I want to reassure the Deputy that my Department and the Government are focused, through the full implementation of the Model of Care for Fertility, on ensuring that patients receive care at the appropriate level of clinical intervention and then those requiring, and eligible for, advanced AHR treatment such as IVF will be able to access same through the public health system.

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn (Donegal, Sinn Fein)
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557. To ask the Minister for Health the reason an appeal under the community drug scheme for a continuous glucose monitoring sensor reimbursement was refused for a person (details supplied) in County Donegal; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [28585/25]

Jennifer Carroll MacNeill (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael)
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As this is a service matter, I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.