Government Summer Legislation Programme: Priority Legislation relevant to the Healthcare Sector
The Government has published its Legislation Programme for the upcoming 13 week Summer session of Dáil Eireann. In this briefing, we highlight the legislation relevant to the healthcare sector which will be prioritised for publication and drafting. We also highlight legislation relevant to the sector for which preparation work is ongoing.

Priority legislation for publication
Pre-legislative scrutiny of the following bills is complete and the bills are expected to be prioritised for publication and progression in the forthcoming Summer session.

Title of Bill	Purpose of Bill
Mental Health Bill	The purpose of the bill is to replace the Mental Health Act 2001 to give effect to recommendations of an Expert Group Review on mental health legislation.
Health (Miscellaneous Provisions) (No. 2) Bill	The purpose of this bill is to provide regulatory enhancements to the Health Act 2007 to enhance governance and oversight of nursing homes and other designated centres and to amend the Nursing Home Support Scheme Act 2009.
Health Information Bill	The purpose of this bill is to provide a robust legislative framework for the processing of health information to support a modern integrated health service.

Priority legislation for drafting
The following bills of relevance to the Healthcare sector are expected to be a priority for drafting.

Title of Bill	Purpose of Bill
Health (Amendment) Bill	The purpose of this bill is to amend the Health Act 2004. It aims to provide for changes to corporate and service planning processes amongst other provisions. It includes new requirements on the HSE Board and CEO with regards to appropriate systems, procedures, and practices to exercise the highest standards of prudent and effective financial and budgetary management and that proposals for corrective action are put in place where expenditure levels have been exceeded. The heads of the bill were approved in February 2021.
Health (Amendment) (Licensing of Professional Home Support Providers) Bill	The purpose of this bill is to provide a regulatory framework comprising of primary legislation for the licensing of home support providers, secondary legislation in the form of regulations, and HIQA national standards with the aim of ensuring that all service users are provided with high quality care. This is in line with Programme for Government and Sláintecare commitments. The heads of bill are currently being prepared.
Health (Amendment) (No.2) Bill	The purpose of this bill is to provide amendments necessary to revise existing section 55 charges (inpatient services for patients who do not establish entitlement to these services under section 52 of the Health Act 1970 (as amended)). The heads of bill are currently being prepared.
Public Health (Tobacco Products and Nicotine Inhaling Products) Bill	The purpose of this bill is to provide for the regulation of tobacco products and nicotine inhaling products such as e-cigarettes. Work is underway to prepare the heads of the bill.

Title of Bill	Purpose of Bill
Northern Ireland (Planned Healthcare Scheme) Bill	The purpose of this bill is to introduce a statutory scheme enabling persons resident in the State to access and be reimbursed for private healthcare in Northern Ireland by the HSE, provided such healthcare is publicly available within Ireland.
Health (Alteration of Criteria for Eligibility) Bill	The purpose of this bill is to extend eligibility for medical cards in cases of terminal illness.
Protection of Liberty Safeguards Bill	The purpose of the bill is to establish the process for authorising care arrangements where deprivation of liberty may occur, along with the requisite safeguards.
Health (Adult Safeguarding) Bill	The purpose of this bill is to underpin a planned national health sector policy on safeguarding vulnerable or at-risk adults in the context of their interactions with the health sector.
National Research Ethics Committee Bill	The purpose of this bill is to provide a legislative framework for National Research Ethics Committees (NRECs) operating in key areas of health research.
Health (Covid-19) Bill	The purpose of this bill is to mandate the wearing of face coverings in certain designated settings.

Title of Bill	Purpose of Bill
Health (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2024	The purpose of this bill is to amend the Health Act 2004. It aims to provide for changes to corporate and service planning processes amongst other provisions. It includes new requirements on the HSE Board and CEO with regards to appropriate systems, procedures, and practices to exercise the highest standards of prudent and effective financial and budgetary management and that proposals for corrective action are put in place where expenditure levels have been exceeded. The heads of the bill were approved in February 2021.
Health (Assisted Human Reproduction) Bill 2022	The purpose of this bill is to provide a regulatory framework comprising of primary legislation for the licensing of home support providers, secondary legislation in the form of regulations, and HIQA national standards with the aim of ensuring that all service users are provided with high quality care. This is in line with Programme for Government and Sláintecare commitments. The heads of bill are currently being prepared.