I thank the Deputy for raising this issue, which I am taking on behalf of the Minister for Health, Deputy Carroll MacNeill. I will provide some background and then address the Deputy's question. Fezolinetant, marketed under the trade name Veoza by Astellas Pharma is a medicine used to treat moderate to severe vasomotor symptoms such as hot flushes and night sweats associated with menopause. The European Medicines Agency granted marketing authorisation for this product in December 2023. The company marketing this medicine made an application for addition to the HSE reimbursement list in February 2024. The HSE has statutory responsibility for medicine pricing and reimbursement decisions, under the Health (Pricing and Supply of Medical Goods) Act 2013. HSE decisions on which medicines are reimbursed by the taxpayer are made on objective, scientific and economic grounds on the advice of the National Centre for Pharmacoeconomics, NCPE. Formal processes govern applications for the pricing and reimbursement of medicines and new uses of existing medicines to be funded or reimbursed, or both. In March 2024, the NCPE completed a rapid review of Veoza. Factors that are evaluated during rapid review include the cost of the drug relative to potential comparators, uncertainty in comparative clinical effectiveness, uncertainty in cost effectiveness and the potential drug budget impact. On this occasion, the NCPE recommended a full health technology assessment, HTA, of Veoza to assess its clinical effectiveness and cost effectiveness compared with the current standard of care. Subsequently, the HSE commissioned a full HTA and a pre-submission consultation took place between the NCPE and the company in April 2024. The next step in the agreed process is for the applicant to submit a full HTA dossier to the NCPE. To date, a full HTA dossier has not been received by the NCPE. Given the substantial budgetary impact of the funds sought by the applicant, the company must engage with the pricing and reimbursement process in order for the application to progress. The State acknowledges the importance of access to medicines and has made considerable investments in new medicines in recent years. A record of more than €3 billion, almost €1 in every €8 of public funding spent on health in 2023 was spent on medicines. This is an unprecedented level of investment in supporting patients through the availability of the latest and wide range of medicines. Between budget 2021 and budget 2024, an additional €128 million was allocated for new medicines, which facilitated the introduction of 194 new drugs for reimbursement by the HSE, including 74 for treating cancer and 46 for treating rare diseases. For 2025, funding of €30 million has been allocated to enable access to new medicines. This will come directly from efficiencies to be achieved by the HSE. Throughout this year and over the coming years, we will continue to focus on investment in medicines including through the maximisation of the considerable budget available, to ensure patients can access medicines in as timely a way as possible.

Sentiment score: 0.12

I once again thank the Deputy for his interest in this important area. I will bring his comments to the attention of the Minister for Health and the officials in the Department. As the initial reply stated, the next step in the agreed process is for the applicant company to submit a full HTA dossier to the NCPE. To date, a full HTA dossier has not been received by the NCPE, which awaits that submission from the applicant company. As stated, I will bring the points the Deputy raised to the attention of the Minister and her officials. The Deputy made a very cogent point on a particular issue for women.

Sentiment score: 0.18

I thank the Deputy for raising this very important issue. We were all shocked and appalled by what we saw on the "RTÉ Investigates" programme last week. I appreciate the opportunity to comment on the matter. I especially recognise how incredibly difficult it has been for the residents of the Residence in Portlaoise and Beneavin Manor and their families. We heard that first hand from the family of Audeon Guy this evening on "Prime Time". I want to make it clear that poor care, neglect and any form of abuse of individuals residing in long-term residential care centres is wholly unacceptable. The highest standards of care and dignity must be always upheld, without exception. Every nursing home resident deserves the highest standard of care at all times. To achieve this, registered providers must adequately support their staff. Having effective governance and management arrangements in place ensures that staff are equipped to deliver person-centred care to residents. The distressing footage aired during the "RTÉ Investigates" programme highlighted serious issues of non-compliance within these facilities. The welfare of residents and their families remains a paramount concern for me. Action is being taken to address these failures and strengthen oversight to ensure the protection and well-being of all individuals in these nursing homes. First, I fully expect HIQA and the office of the chief inspector to utilise all powers available to them to ensure rigorous oversight and accountability in nursing home care. HIQA's chief inspector has confirmed their continuous intensive engagements with the two nursing homes concerned and has committed to providing me with an update on their progress by the end of this week. I assure the Deputy that my Department and I are monitoring developments closely, with both these nursing homes and the welfare of residents remaining my highest priority. Second, I have formally requested an overview of the nursing home operators owned by Emeis. The chief inspector has committed to furnishing an interim report to me by the end of this week and a full report by the end of next week, providing an overview of regulatory history, including but not limited to regulatory compliance, escalating enforcement actions and any additional conditions of registration. Third, the directors of nursing from both local HSE community support teams have been on site at the two nursing homes in question. Additionally, local safeguarding and protection teams are actively reviewing all safeguarding concerns raised in relation to these facilities. I and Department of Health officials met with representative bodies and stakeholders from the nursing home sector earlier today. The engagements were constructive, with an immediate focus on delivering the highest quality of care to residents of nursing homes in Ireland. On the safeguarding points the Deputy made and on adult safeguarding in the sector more generally, the Government is fully committed to strengthening existing protections. We will publish a national adult safeguarding policy for the health and social care sector shortly. The policy will commit to the development of adult safeguarding legislation for the sector and will build on the range of existing legislation, policies and procedures already in place in the sector for preventing, reporting and responding to abuse. The Government has included a health (adult safeguarding) Bill in its current legislative programme to facilitate this. It is recognised that this will be an important further development in preventing abuse and protecting vulnerable adults from abuse. What happened in the two nursing homes featured in the "RTÉ Investigates" programme was appalling. It was sheer neglect and abuse of older people. This is something that I, the Department and the Government take very seriously. It is something I want to ensure, through the process I have outlined, never happens again.

Sentiment score: 0.17

There is a commitment in the programme for Government to bring forward an adult safeguarding policy for the health and social care sector. I expect the issue will be brought to the Cabinet before the summer recess. Following that, we will be looking for approval to progress a health and adult safeguarding Bill, which is in the current legislative programme. It is a matter of absolute priority. I am on record as saying that I would like to see inspections taking place more quickly and timeframes for protected disclosures. The Deputy will appreciate that I want to work within a process. Immediately after the two nursing homes were named by RTÉ, I met representatives of HIQA and requested two things. The first was that HIQA would engage intensively with the nursing homes. It committed to doing that. The second was that it would provide a report on the Emeis group and all its nursing homes. I asked for an overview of all its nursing homes and its regulatory history, including but not limited to regulatory compliance, escalating enforcement actions and any additional conditions of registration. I expect to receive a report with an update on the two nursing homes by the end of this week. I also expect an interim report in respect of the Emeis group by the end of this week and a more substantive report on it - the full report - by the end of next week. This is all about older people in nursing homes. I want them to have safe environments. We all have elderly relatives. It is something I feel strongly and passionately about.

Sentiment score: 0.31