Pádraig Rice (Cork South-Central, Social Democrats)
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442. To ask the Minister for Health the reason for the discrepancy between her Department’s stated position with respect to medical evacuations of paediatric patients (details supplied); if the position has changed since 2024; if all children have been evacuated via Egypt; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [52752/25]

Pádraig Rice (Cork South-Central, Social Democrats)
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444. To ask the Minister for Health the number of medical evacuations of Palestinian children since 2023, by year and location of evacuation. [52777/25]

Jennifer Carroll MacNeill (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 442 and 444 together.

I thank the Deputy for his question in relation to medical evacuations from Gaza to Ireland.

I can advise the Deputy that Ireland continues a strong tradition of providing humanitarian assistance including through the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Irish Aid humanitarian and development assistance programme, and the HSE Global Health Programme.

In September 2024, a Government decision was made that Ireland would evacuate up to 30 paediatric patients and their carers out of Egypt, in response to the World Health Organisation's (WHO) request to activate the EU Civil Protection Mechanism (UCPM) to assist in addressing the Gaza healthcare needs.

On 15 July 2025, the Government amended the scope of the Gaza Medevac Initiative to allow for family members (parents, minor siblings or adult dependent siblings) to apply for permission to enter the State, and for exploration of alternative exit routes for medical evacuation. This decision not only applies to future medical evacuation operations but also to patients already here under the Medevac Initiative who have qualifying family members still in Gaza.

The number of patients and companions medically evacuated to Ireland is set out in the table below:

My Department remains committed to facilitating the medical evacuation of 18 further child patients and their accompanying carers and family members and officials will continue to work closely with the HSE, CHI, WHO and the Ministry of Health in Gaza regarding selection criteria and complex logistical arrangements for the next and future medical evacuations.

Department officials and the HSE are receiving ongoing support from the Department of Justice, Home Affairs and Migration and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade to facilitate the next medical evacuations of children from Gaza through Egypt, and through Jordan. Given the complex nature of medical evacuation operations, several Departments and agencies are working together to get the necessary arrangements in place to evacuate the paediatric patients and their accompanying family members. It is expected that this medical evacuation will take place in the coming month.

This is subject to all permissions and logistics being put in place. Such a medical evacuation is highly complex and many determining factors are subject to challenging and shifting external circumstances.