Danny Healy-Rae Urges Govt to Preserve Cross-Border Cataract Care
Danny Healy-Rae spoke on 11 Nov 2020 about the impact of Brexit and urged the government to protect cross-border medical services after 31 December. He warned rural communities and patients could suffer if bilateral arrangements and local services are not secured.
Key concerns
He said the debate was critical and warned that Brexit would have “critical significance” for farmers, exporters, importers, hauliers, fishermen and many sectors, and cited the Department of Finance view that 1 in 7 could lose their jobs. He warned rural Kerry could be hit worse than other areas and asked the government and the minister to minimise disruption in the coming talks.
Cross-border medical treatment
He criticised the minister for pledging reimbursement for Northern residents travelling to Europe or to Dublin for treatment but not mentioning reciprocal arrangements for residents travelling north to Belfast. He said reciprocity should be assured so patients on both sides can continue to access care.
Cataract service and local impact
He recounted securing a cross-border cataract service with a colleague from West Cork that prevented many people from going blind over the last three years. He said almost 2,000 people would have gone blind without that service and expressed pride that the local arrangement had been successful.
Political objections and urgency
He warned political expediency was now threatening the service, citing opposition from some deputies and specific calls to stop the service in recent days. He criticised the Taoiseach’s reaction when questioned and said it was not a matter for laughter if people faced blindness or prolonged pain.
Appeal and demands on the minister
He reminded the minister of a promise a year earlier to introduce legislation for a bilateral arrangement to continue cross-border care after 31 December. He urged the minister to stand firm, ensure reimbursement and continuity of services, and warned he would hold the government to account if patients lost sight or faced long waits for operations.
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I suppose this is one of the most critical debates that we've had to debate here since I came up here to Dublin, to Dali and it's of critical importance what's going to happen on the 1st of January, it has critical significance for farmers, business exporters and importers, haulers, fishermen for so many days, different sectors of our economy and we are told even by the Department of Finance recently that 1 in 7 could lose their jobs because of Brexit and I fear that will hurt our side of the country worse than anywhere else, that being rural Ireland and rural Kerry. I'm asking and hoping that the Government and our Minister here for Foreign Affairs to minimise the disruption to our economy in whatever way they can in the talks in the coming days and weeks before the end of the year. Minister, I heard you going through the bill and you mentioned that for Northern residents that they would be reimbursed if they were to travel to Europe or even to Dublin for the South of Ireland for treatment, that would be medical treatment for whatever reasons that they couldn't find the treatment in the six counties. Minister, but you didn't mention the same thing for our residents going northwards to Belfast and I can't understand that, surely we should be seeing after our own before we see after anyone else. Minister, and to go back a year ago, you promised that when we asked the question about continuing the cross-border directive after Brexit, you promised us that a bill would be introduced to ensure that a bilateral arrangement would be had between England and Ireland in relation to travel across the border. Minister, and I think that the border will say to the border will say to achieve, you know, in our case, cataracts where people would have gone blind if they were in the last three years now, coming up three years now, many people would have gone blind. I fear almost 2,000 people would have gone blind if we didn't put that service in place. And I'm very proud and glad that both myself and Deputy Collins from West Cork got that service going. Him and Cork and myself and Kerry, we were the first to do it and I'm very glad and proud that it has been successful. But we're very worried now because it seems that political expediency is coming into this now and that Fianna Fáil and some Fine Gael deputies are anxious to stop us and to stop that service. Because in recent days I was very disappointed because in recent days I was very disappointed to hear a Colin Bork, a deputy for Cork, a companion of your own, a co-deputy with Michail Martin in Cork, to think that he suggested that we should be stopped and that the service should be stopped at this time. Little does he know how important it is to have your sight. And for the one thing, before she went to her grave and she lived to be 97 years of age, my grandmother used to always pray and hope that she'd never go back as she called it. She didn't want to go blind, she wanted to see around her. And I'm appealing to you now, Minister, you promised us that time over a year ago that you would put legislation in place to ensure a bilateral arrangement. would be put in place to ensure that we could continue this service after the 31st of December. Michail Martin, the Taoiseach of our country, I'm sad to say when he was asked a couple of weeks about this, he was smirking and laughing. But it's no smirking and laughing, Minister, if we're going blind or if we're threatened with going blind. If we're roaring with pain in the middle of the night and that you need to get your hip done and that we're told here that we'll have to wait two or three years to get an operation in Cork or in Sully, it's not fair to do that to people. And the Taoiseach is promising some centre in Cork but that will take over two years or more if it ever comes to being. I'm asking you now in this government to be in all laughing matter. I will remind you every day of every week that we're up here for whatever length of time you're here. If you're going to let people go blind in here, watch, we'll remind you of it. If you're going to let people continue roaring with pain, we'll remind you of that too Minister. But I'm appealing to you and I respect you for saying it a year ago but it looks like the Taoiseach hasn't stopped and that he hasn't ground it. I'm asking you to stand your ground and ensure that people in Kerry and Cork do not go blind because of the want of this service that we were supplying people with for the last three years. Thank you very much. Thank you. Thank you very much. Let's talk for. Thank you.
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