National Report IrelandNov 2012

Generic Substitution

The Health (pricing and supply of medical goods) Bill 2012 was published in July this year, and is due to be enacted later in the year.

Under the new legislation, pharmacists will be able to substitute generic equivalent medicine at the patient’s request.  A list of prescribed items which may be supplied or reimbursed by the Health Service Executive to patients under the General Medical Services (GMS) and community drug schemes.  Reference pricing will also be introduced, in a bid to curb the current spending on medicinal products.  If the product that the patient chooses is above this price (i.e. more expensive than the generic), then they will have to pay the difference.

HEALTH INFORMATION AND QUALITY AUTHORITY (HIQA) STANDARDS

The Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) launched the National Standards for Safer Better Healthcare on the 26th of June. The Standards apply to all healthcare services provided by or funded by the HSE excluding mental health services (including hospitals, ambulance services, community services, primary care services and general practice) with immediate effect. The standards are to be implemented within current resources. The standards will form the basis of a licensing system for healthcare providers introduced on a phased basis.

During the first phase HIQA will provide an education and awareness programme, develop guidance on implementation and develop the monitoring programme. All Healthcare Providers are to begin assessing their services and develop implementation plans.  In the second phase HIQA will commence its Monitoring Programme commences mid-2013 initially focusing on HSE hospital and ambulance services.  The next phase will see the monitoring of standards in primary care (no date for this has been specified).

Over the coming months, the IMO will be consulting with members as to the implication of these standards on general practice. 

Budget Submission

The IMO recently submitted our 2013 budget submission which had a particular focus on addressing health inequalities and ensuring health is considered across the policy spectrum in Ireland.  An entire section of this Submission outlined the role of Primary Care in addressing Health Inequalities.  Our recommendations to the government were:

• Urgent consultation and negotiation on the funding and provision of universal access to Primary Care Services including resources for the prevention and management o chronic disease in the Primary Care setting.
• Buidling on the HSE Health Status reports which measure deprivation using the Haase and Pratschke Index and the SAHRU Index of Material Deprivation, a model for the allocation of resources to Primary Care is needed which takes into account patterns of morbidity and GP utilisation in areas of deprivation.
• The Government must ensure that vulnerable rural and deprived urban communities have adequate GP cover.

The IMO were then asked to present the submission to the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform, which took place on Friday 9th November.