Health information Bill publication
Micheál Martin highlights worsening hospital waiting lists and seeks a publication date for the long-promised health information Bill; the Minister says a revised scheme is being prepared but gives no date.
Over the last two weeks, people have been genuinely taken aback by the situation pertaining to two 101 year old women who were kept on trolleys in accident and emergency departments for an extraordinary length of time. We have seen the figures for waiting lists getting much worse month by month. Our health system is in crisis, particularly in terms of information and data. The Minister for Health has promised a raft of legislation pertaining to our health service in the programme for Government. The Government has been committed to the health information Bill for the last four years in terms of enabling us to properly assess and analyse what is happening within the service. It would be helpful if the Minister, Deputy Bruton, could indicate a timeline for that Bill. Could he also indicate when legislation pertaining to patient safety and the patient safety authority will be forthcoming?
Comment on this
The Minister for Health will shortly be introducing a revised general scheme of the health information Bill in view of policy developments. It is not possible to indicate at this stage when it will be published. The heads of the Bill were approved some time ago.
Comment on this
Will the Minister give me the date?