Ryan O'Meara (Tipperary North, Fianna Fail)
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1626. To ask the Minister for Health if she has received the report from the National Hearing Care Plan Working Group that was due by end of Q2 2025, as per the terms of reference; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [57737/25]

Shay Brennan (Dublin Rathdown, Fianna Fail)
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1637. To ask the Minister for Health the progress of the working group on the National Hearing Care Plan; if she has received the report from the working group that was due by end of Q2 as per the terms of reference; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [57824/25]

Pádraig Rice (Cork South-Central, Social Democrats)
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1640. To ask the Minister for Health the progress of the Working Group on the National Hearing Care Plan; if she has received the report from the Working Group that was due by end of Q2, as per the Terms of Reference; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [57831/25]

Albert Dolan (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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1651. To ask the Minister for Health the progress of the working group on the National Hearing Care Plan; if she has received the report from the working group that was due by end of Q2 as per the terms of reference; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [57885/25]

Barry Heneghan (Dublin Bay North, Independent)
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1661. To ask the Minister for Health the progress of the Working Group on the National Hearing Care Plan; if she has received the report from the Working Group that was due by end of Q2 as per the Terms of Reference; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [57978/25]

Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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1676. To ask the Minister for Health to outline the work to date and the progress of the Working Group on the National Hearing Care Plan; and if she is aware that any delay could further exacerbate the hearing issues of thousands young and old. [58035/25]

Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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1677. To ask the Minister for Health when she received the report from the Working Group on the National Hearing Care Plan, which was due earlier in 2025; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [58036/25]

Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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1678. To ask the Minister for Health if she is aware that a charity (details supplied) for deaf and hard of hearing people has stated that any prolonged delay in implementing a national hearing care will result in placing thousands at risk of dementia, depression and social isolation, and that an increased investment in audiology services delivers a return of €16 per €1 on top of the often life-changing effects for those who are deaf or hard of hearing or facing loss of hearing; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [58037/25]

Barry Heneghan (Dublin Bay North, Independent)
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1702. To ask the Minister for Health if she will address the growing backlog in access to audiology services, with more than 26,000 people now waiting for treatment and reports of delays of up to three years for hearing assessments and hearing aids, including for children; the urgent actions being taken to expand capacity and reduce waiting times; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [58090/25]

Barry Heneghan (Dublin Bay North, Independent)
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1703. To ask the Minister for Health if she will examine the introduction of a cross-border care arrangement to allow patients waiting excessive length of times for audiology treatment or hearing aids to access timely services abroad, in recognition of the serious communication, developmental, and social impacts prolonged hearing loss can have on both children and adults; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [58091/25]

Jennifer Carroll MacNeill (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 1626, 1637, 1640, 1651, 1661, 1676 to 1678, inclusive, 1702 and 1703 together.

The Minister for Health established the National Hearing Care Plan Working Group in August 2024. The Group is jointly chaired by the Department of Health and the Health Service Executive (HSE).

Membership of the Working Group is drawn from relevant stakeholders, including HSE clinicians and management, the Irish Society of Hearing Aid Audiologists (ISHAA), the Irish Academy of Audiology (IAA), and the Department of Social Protection.

The Hearing Care Plan Working Group has been tasked with developing recommendations for a holistic model of hearing care in Ireland. To support this, a structured workstream has been developed, including subgroups focused on progressing priority issues. Significant progress has been made to date. There have been 15 meetings of the Working Group and associated subgroups since formation.

The scope of the work being considered by the Group has expanded beyond initial expectations, which has impacted on the timeline of the delivery of the report. The Group is examining:

• The existing level of hearing care provision in Ireland.
• Capacity constraints and opportunities within the HSE.
• Workforce planning, including improved recruitment and retention in the public system.
• The appropriate level of regulation of the audiology profession.
• Improving referral pathways and the integration between acute and community care.
• The effective linkage between public and private care to improve patient outcomes, including reductions in waiting times.