I thank the Labour Party and all contributors to this debate on the motion on Ireland's response to Covid-19. The Government has taken strong and decisive action in its response to Covid-19. The overall strategy is based on the Government's resilience and recovery plan, which was published last September. The plan provides us with a framework to enable society and businesses to operate as much as possible while continuing to suppress the virus. It is designed to help individuals, organisations and sectors to better…

I welcome the opportunity to provide an update to the House on this matter. Covid-19, as the Senator will be aware, has had a significant impact on the primary care sector, including the redeployment of staff from their core roles to aid in direct response to the pandemic. Those staff who have been redeployed have taken on essential duties, including Covid tracking and testing and providing additional support to long-term residential facilities for older persons, disability services and mental health services. Sign…

I thank the Senator for raising this matter. The health service has faced an unprecedented challenge in the past 11 months. In some ways, redeployment of primary care staff can be thought of as the community sector turning to its own surge capacity to respond to the needs for testing and tracing services and, crucially, to provide additional supports to the residents of nursing homes and other long-term residential facilities, whether private or public. The focus in the months ahead will be on the following: contin…

I thank the Senators for highlighting the issue of period poverty and for the opportunity to discuss the work the Department of Health and the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth have undertaken on this matter. I thank the proposers of the Bill, Senators Clifford-Lee, Ardagh and Fitzpatrick, and the proposers of the second Bill: Senators Moynihan, Wall, Sherlock, Hoey and Bacik. I am very thankful for the co-operation of Senators today. I am a Minister of State in the Department and …

The pandemic has posed particular challenges for all of our citizens in terms of their mental health and well-being. As part of our response to these challenges, we have provided guidance and support for people to manage both their physical and mental well-being through public health information campaigns such as our In This Together campaign and through information networks, including key organisations working with vulnerable people. Following on from the In This Together campaign, in November of last year we laun…

We have put €7 million in support of the delivery of a range of actions and we have worked with all the stakeholders. Effectively, we are asking people to keep active and go outdoors. Even during the winter, physical activity can be very helpful. Indeed, as I was listening to the radio in Limerick when coming to Dublin today, it was great to hear that local GAA clubs have opened up their grounds so people can walk around. We are working with all the various stakeholders and organisations because isolation is a sign…

I agree with many Deputies here today about the criteria. We have had much discussion about carers and front-line staff. Under the national immunisation advisory committee, NIAC, and NPHET, this is a living document. It can be revised. Every Deputy has been approached by many people to ask where they stand. The Department has been in ongoing dialogue with the HSE about the additional expenditure required to scale up the vaccination programme over the coming months. Consultations have taken place with the Irish Medi…

I welcome this opportunity to update the House on the vital public health policy areas falling within my remit. While physical and mental well-being have always been important, the Covid-19 pandemic has put public health and well-being centre stage in both Government policymaking and in citizens’ lives. Empowering people and communities to keep well and shifting focus further towards prevention are key elements of Sláintecare, delivered through Healthy Ireland, our national action plan to help people live healthier…

I thank Senator O'Loughlin for raising this important issue and for giving me the opportunity, on behalf of the Minister, Deputy Stephen Donnelly, to speak on the reimbursement of patisiran for hATTR amyloidosis. I fully understand that access to potentially beneficial drug treatments is an extremely important issue for people with this condition. As the Senator is aware, the HSE has statutory responsibility for medicine pricing and reimbursement decisions under the Health (Pricing and Supply of Medical Goods) Act …

The Minister, Deputy Stephen Donnelly, has received a number of representations on this matter from patients and concerned family members. I fully appreciate that this is a worrying time for patients, families and carers, and I hope the Senator's friend Pat and any other people who want this drug will get a good result. The Minister and I hope that this process comes to a satisfactory conclusion for all concerned. It is important to note that the HSE executive management team is the decision-making body for the rei…

I thank the Senator for raising this matter. First, I wish to state there is a strong legislative regime in Ireland to protect all workers in respect of their working conditions, including work-related health and safety. On the issue of general working conditions, there is a comprehensive body of employment rights legislation for which the Workplace Relations Commission, WRC, is mandated to secure compliance. This legislation protects all employees who are legally employed on a contract of service basis. Where an i…

First, I again note there is a strong legislative regime in place in Ireland to protect all workers in respect of their working conditions, including work-related health and safety. However, I urge these employees to engage, in the first instance, with their employer to see how their concerns can be resolved at workplace level. Second, my colleague, the Minister for Media, Tourism, Arts, Culture, Sport and the Gaeltacht, who is responsible for media policy, including online safety legislation, is currently advancin…

I thank the Deputy for raising this issue and giving me the opportunity, on behalf of the Minister for Health, Deputy Stephen Donnelly, to provide an update to the House on waiting times for paediatric operations, including those for children with spina bifida. The Minister and I sincerely regret that children can experience a long waiting time for appointments and treatment. I am conscious of the burden this places on them and their families. The Government's priority is to improve waiting times for all patients a…

The Minister and I are acutely aware of the distress and inconvenience caused to patients and their families when urgent care is delayed. Improving waiting times for hospital appointments and procedures remains a key commitment for the Government. However, it is acknowledged that the challenges faced by the health system in 2020 are unlike anything we have ever faced before. We are very aware of the impact the Covid-19 crisis has had on our health service and the delivery of scheduled care. CHI's commitment to prio…

I thank Deputy Connolly for raising this issue and for giving me the opportunity to update the House on waiting times for orthopaedic services in University Hospital Galway on behalf of Minister for Health, Deputy Stephen Donnelly. I sincerely regret that patients can experience a long waiting time for hospital appointments and procedures and I am conscious of the burden this places on them and their families. I also recognise that waiting times for scheduled appointments and procedures have been impacted by the Co…

The Minister, Deputy Donnelly, and I are acutely aware of the distress and inconvenience caused to patients and their families when urgent care is delayed. Improving waiting times for hospital appointments and procedures remains a key commitment of the Government. It is acknowledged, however, that the challenges faced by the health system in 2020 are unlike anything we have faced before. We are very aware of the impact Covid-19 has had on our health service and the delivery of scheduled care. The Minister and I wel…

I thank Deputy Flaherty for raising this issue. The provision of telecommunication services is a matter for the relevant service providers operating in a fully liberalised market regulated by the Commission for Communications Regulation, ComReg, as independent regulator. Unfortunately, there is no provision for the Minister or Department to instruct a commercial operator to do anything in this context. Decisions on the location of fibre roll-out are a commercial matter for operators. In April 2017, the then Ministe…

The Covid-19 pandemic has highlighted the importance of good and reliable broadband to ensure that citizens across Ireland can avail of remote working, education and other essential online facilities. This is reflected in the commitments in the programme for Government for delivery of the national broadband plan, which will be a key enabler to many of the policies envisaged, particularly around increased levels of remote working. However, ensuring that all premises across the State have access to quality and high-s…

I thank Senators Pauline O'Reilly, Garvey and Martin, and the Minister of State, Senator Hackett, for tabling this important motion. I thank them for the opportunity to set out the commitment of the Government and my Department to expand access to free contraception to all women aged between 17 and 25 and, indeed, the commitment to promoting women's health more generally through the work of the women's health task force in the Department of Health. Like Senator Martin, I am humbled and very thankful to attend this …

I thank Deputies from across the various parties for moving this very important Private Members' motion on mental health and Covid-19. I echo what my colleague, the Minister of State, Deputy Butler, said in her opening remarks about this issue being raised during what has been a difficult and distressing period for most people. As stated at the outset, the Government is not opposing the motion. In fact, we welcome the opportunity to discuss the very important topic of mental health. I assure the House that people’s…