Pádraig Rice (Cork South-Central, Social Democrats)
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703. To ask the Minister for Health the timeline for the introduction of the common conditions service in community pharmacies; if it is her intention to have this service operational by year end; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [50510/25]

Pádraig Rice (Cork South-Central, Social Democrats)
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704. To ask the Minister for Health following publication of the community pharmacy agreement 2025, to provide further details in respect of the consultation fee for the common conditions service; if a set rate has been agreed; if this fee will be covered under the medical card; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [50511/25]

Jennifer Carroll MacNeill (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 703 and 704 together.

I propose to take PQs 50510/25 and 50511/25 together.

The report of the Expert Taskforce to Support the Expansion of the Role of Pharmacy (the Taskforce) was published in August 2024. Its recommendations provide a framework to inform how we are going to expand care in the community and have been strengthened by the Community Pharmacy Agreement.

The Common Conditions Service (CCS) was a key recommendation from the final report from the Taskforce. This service will be the first of its kind in Ireland. This service will offer pharmacists the opportunity to expand care in their own communities.

The CCS will enable community pharmacists to provide advice and treat common and often self-limiting conditions in community pharmacies. The development of key enablers is being progressed via the Community Pharmacy Expansion Implementation Oversight Group and will soon be in place. The CCS will enable community pharmacists to manage common conditions by offering self-care advice, safety-netting, and, when appropriate, supplying certain over-the-counter (OTC) medicine(s) and prescribing prescription-only medicine(s) (POMs) through established protocols.

The Common Conditions Service will ultimately build on the expertise of community pharmacists, allowing them to utilise their unique skills as medicines experts to benefit patients and the public within the healthcare service.

Any registered pharmacists who undertake the appropriate training, which will be launched by the PSI soon, can offer this service at a pharmacy.

It will be a fee-paying service, with pharmacies entitled to charge a consultation fee which will not be reimbursed by the State. Patients with eligibility under the community drug schemes can have the cost of the prescribed medicines covered.

It is anticipated that the key enablers to facilitate community pharmacists to establish Common Condition Services within their own community pharmacies will be in place within the next few months, with pharmacies enabled to commence the services thereafter, acknowledging that pharmacies will determine how best to roll out the service, having regard for other demands at this time of year, including the important role of pharmacies in delivering immunisation services.

Following the launch of the CCS, the Department will work with key stakeholders to progress implementation of the other recommendations from the Taskforce. Over time, it is anticipated that the Common Conditions Service will expand further to meet the needs of the public. Any further expansion of this service will be completed with key stakeholder involvement, considering cost-effectiveness and value for the State