I extend a word of welcome to the Monaghan Women's Assembly and other guests, ach ba mhaith liom fáilte mór a chur roimh Cara Darmody, who is about to complete her 50-hour sleep-out to again raise the scandal of children waiting for assessment of need. Tá fáilte romhat, Cara. Since yesterday, the depth of public anger at the Government's decision to withdraw funding supports for blister pack medication has been laid bare. The reaction has been extraordinary. Pharmacists and carers have been inundated with messages of fear and disbelief. People who have never contacted a TD before have been calling constituency offices begging for someone to act. Yesterday, the Taoiseach at least conceded that he would look at this issue but today's newspaper tells us that the Fine Gael Minister, Jennifer Carroll MacNeill, is not budging. She is refusing to recognise the disaster she is presiding over. Vulnerable people who depend on blister packs are being told by a Fine Gael Minister they will face fees in the new year and are on their own. It is a Scrooge-like response in the weeks before Christmas. Blister packs are not a luxury. They are a lifeline. Tens of thousands rely on them, including older people managing multiple medications, people with dementia or Alzheimer's, and those with intellectual disabilities, brain injuries or mental health challenges. Carers and front-line workers know exactly what will happen without them. These packs allow people to live independently. They prevent confusion, mixed doses, missed doses and double dosing. The human stories coming in since yesterday are stark. We heard from a woman caring for her grandmother whose medication changes constantly due to supply issues. Without blister packs, which she cannot afford to pay for, her grandmother loses her independence. We heard from front-line workers deeply worried about their frail clients living alone, often taking ten or more tablets a day, who are confused over what tablets to take and when. We heard from families caring for loved ones with dementia, who finally adapted to blister packs after enormous effort. They now feel abandoned. One daughter wrote about her 91-year-old mother who lives alone, already battling rising bills, and relies on blister packs to remain safe at home. She said that taking this away will destroy her independence. These are not isolated stories. This is occurring in the middle of a cost-of-living crisis. Today, the CSO announced a rise in annual inflation that is almost twice the rate projected by Government. When people are told that blister packs may now cost €20, €30 or even €50 a month, they simply cannot absorb it. The contrast could not be starker. The Government has found billions for developers, banks and landlords, yet when it comes to older people, dementia patients and people on disability payments, the approach suddenly becomes penny-pinching. This is a political choice, not a financial necessity. The most troubling part is these concerns are not new. Sinn Féin's health spokesperson, David Cullinane, raised this with Government in October, during the community pharmacy agreement debate. He warned that narrowing supports for monitoring dosage systems would expose vulnerable patients to new charges but those warnings were ignored. We now have a decision by a Fine Gael Minister that will increase costs for vulnerable patients, undermine medication adherence, overwhelm carers and potentially lead to avoidable GP visits and hospital admissions. It is a decision that pharmacists, carers and front-line workers say is a false economy. I will put some clear questions to the Minister. Why is blister pack support being removed without any impact assessment, consultation or plan for those who depend on it? Why were warnings from pharmacists, carers and Sinn Féin ignored? Will the Government now act immediately to reverse this decision and protect vulnerable patients from real harm?
Sentiment score: -0.08
The Minister talks about spelling it out. I will spell it out for him again. People are struggling with a cost-of-living crisis and the Government does not get that. People with disabilities or care needs are particularly struggling and the Government does not get that. The way we know it does not get that is because there are vulnerable people who need blister packs to get by in their day-to-day lives and to have some semblance of independence. Currently they get those blister packs free of charge and this Scrooge-like Government through its Scrooge-like Minister is going to charge them €20, €30, maybe even €50 per month come the new year. I am asking the Minister to finally get it and get live to the fact that people are going through really tough times and, rather than a kick in the teeth from Government, they need a little bit of support. What they need above all is that the supports currently in place are not removed. He did not answer my question directly, so I will ask him again. Please will he give assurance to those people who rely on blister packs that the Government will not impose these charges in January? Will it finally hear the cries coming into all of our constituency offices for a little bit of understanding on the part of this out-of-touch Government?
Sentiment score: 0.04
Answer the question, Minister.
Sentiment score: 0.00
I am trying to help the Minister wise up.
Sentiment score: 0.70
The Minister has not answered any questioner.
Sentiment score: 0.00
When is that happening?
Sentiment score: 0.00
Will the Leas-Cheann Comhairle note that the question was-----
Sentiment score: 0.00