21 February 2023

Increase sight test fees and make greater use of primary eye care

Deputy Sean Sherlock, TD for Cork East, has raised concerns in the Dail about access to eye care for his region, quoting waiting list figures and hospital staff vacancies.

Minister Anne Rabbittee, responding on behalf of the minister for health, suggested the need to treat more patients in primary care, saying, “community-based treatments allow hospitals to focus their resources on more complex cases”.

But deputy Sherlock questioned whether it is “financially viable” for providers when the €23 they receive per medical card patient “does not reflect the cost of providing the service”.

Minister Rabbitte responded that the minister for health “wants to see reform” in eye care provision “to ensure people receive the service they require”. She added that “reform in the area includes making the best use of the skills of many talented optical clinicians who live and work in Ireland”.

Dan Hodgson, FODO’s head of policy and public affairs, said: “Much of the debate reflects what FODO Ireland has been saying for a long time. Increasing the fees for eye examinations, and bringing more care out of hospitals, will mean fewer people are added to hospital waiting lists. It also means those on waiting lists can be seen sooner – hospital pressures reduce, some patients are seen in a more convenient place, and those that need specialist care are seen sooner. So, we need the HSE to contract more services under the medical card from local optical practices – something the minister for health has already stated should happen.”

Read the entire debate in the Dail