157. Deputy David Cullinane asked the Minister for Health the status of the chronic disease management programme and implementation across all areas; the number of GPs providing services in each area; the number of other workers associated with the programme in whole time equivalent in each area; the number of unfilled posts associated with the programme by area; the spend on the scheme in each year since inception and to date in 2026, by area, in tabular form; if she has considered making the scheme universal; and the potential cost of making the scheme universal. [67246/26]

Under the GMS scheme, the HSE contracts GPs to provide medical services without charge to medical card and GP visit card holders. The General Practitioner (GP) Chronic Disease Management (CDM) Programme commenced in 2020 and was rolled out on a phased basis to adult GMS (Medical Card and GP Visit Card) patients over a 4-year period.

The specified chronic conditions included in the Programme are Type 2 Diabetes; Asthma; Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) and cardiovascular disease (including Heart Failure, Ischaemic Heart Disease, Cerebrovascular Disease (Stroke/Transient Ischemic Attack (TIA), Atrial Fibrillation).

In 2023, the programme was expanded to include adult GMS patients with hypertension, and all women diagnosed with gestational diabetes or pre-eclampsia. Work is currently underway to further expand the programme to include chronic kidney disease, among other conditions.

It is not currently planned to expand eligibility for the Programme to all patients on a universal basis. However, this may be considered in the context of broader expansions of eligibility and the implementation of Sláintecare. It is important to note that any expansion of the Programme requires careful clinical consideration and consultation with GPs and other stakeholders to ensure that the expansion can be rolled out effectively and to define the phasing and time-scale of the expansion. The cost of the expansion could be determined only once those elements are defined.

I have asked the Health Service Executive to respond to the Deputy directly in relation to the number of GPs contracted to provide the CDM programme and the expenditure on the programme to date.

In relation to the number of other workers associated with the programme, it is not possible to provide a definitive number of practice nurses directly engaged in the delivery of the CDM programme. GPs privately employ practice staff as they see fit and as suitable to the particular needs of their practice.