Mary Butler (Waterford, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputies for their participation in the debate. As the Minister, Deputy Donnelly, outlined yesterday, the measures being introduced as part of this legislation will remove barriers to accessing the rent a room scheme, support further vaccination programmes and help to strengthen Ireland's visibility on our medicine supply chain.

The first measure is an important step to meeting Government's Housing for All goals, by ensuring that people eligible to receive the rent a room relief can avail of the exemption of that income from the medical card assessment process, where appropriate, as soon as possible. I agree with Deputy Connolly that we need to look at the analysis, breakdown and cost to the Exchequer. We do not want to see unintended consequences where we would expect rents to be at €14,000 for renting out one room. I know that is the top level, but the point I am trying to make is that it does not need to be the norm.

The proposed legislation also seeks to ensure that we have a robust medicine supply system in place and that we can utilise the expertise in the system in further vaccination programmes. It seeks to ensure that where shortages in medicine supplies occur, actions can be taken to mitigate the impacts on patients and that suitable replacement medicinal products can be used instead. Shortages of medicinal products have unfortunately become a reality across many countries in recent years. This Bill will allow us to be more agile in our response to these occurrences.

The Bill will also enable pharmacists and other health professions to continue to expand the supports they provide to our health services. It is important to note that the Bill intends to amend the Irish Medicines Board Act 1995 to enable pharmacists to sell and supply certain approved medicines without the need for prescription, subject to appropriate regulation and controls, to be set out in secondary legislation. This will be developed with stakeholders including the HSE and the Pharmaceutical Society of Ireland, and other protocols will be put in place.

The Bill, when enacted, will also amend current legislation to enhance the Minister's powers to make regulation for management of and access to medicinal products. This will include provision for the enhanced management of shortages of medicinal products. The legislation will strength joint actions by the Health Products Regulatory Authority, the HSE, the pharmacy regulator and the Department of Health. It will enable pharmacists to make therapeutic substitutions of products of which there is a shortage in line with an approved clinical protocol, which is the important piece.

I also want to put this on record about medical cards. Currently, 43% of the population hold either a medical card or a GP visit card. Some 50% coverage is available if all eligible people take up the cards, especially the GP cards. For these reasons, the Minister, Deputy Donnelly, and I are committed to having the legislation put in place as soon as possible to ensure early implementation of these measures. Further, as I outlined earlier, the Minister proposes to amend the Bill on Committee Stage to introduce additional reporting requirements for actors in the medicine supply chain to support the national system for management of medicine supplies and to facilitate a more proactive system for the management of medicine shortages.

On Deputy Connolly's question, because this is really important, I reiterate that it is intended to amend the Irish Medicines Board Act 1995 to enable pharmacists to sell and supply certain approved medicines without the need for prescription subject to appropriate regulations and controls to be set out in secondary legislation. I agree with her wholeheartedly about mental health prescriptions. They would have to be provided. There will be dialogue with stakeholders such as the HSE, the pharmacy regulator and others. Protocols will be put in place. This will happen when the Bill is enacted. It will then amend current legislation to enhance these powers with the safeguards in place. That is something I will keep a close eye on. I thank Deputy Connolly for raising that.

I thank Deputies again for their contributions. I look forward to more engagement on the next Stages of the Bill and to it being passed by the House.

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