Minister is misinformed on claims, says deputy

The floodgate for potential hepatitis C claimants has been open for more than a decade but only 2,200 of up to 16,000 people who could seek compensation have come forward, the Dáil was told.

Kathleen Lynch (Labour, Cork North Central) made the claim as the Dáil passed all stages of the controversial hepatitis C Bill by 59 votes to 38.

The Bill provides insurance for victims of infected blood products who would not otherwise get insurance. However, support groups believe that it restricts the number of people who can claim compensation for infection.

Describing the legislation as deeply offensive and insisting that Minister for Health Mary Harney had been badly informed, Ms Lynch said that "in presenting this Bill the Tánaiste outlined the potential appalling vista of the floodgate opening".

The 15,000 to 16,000 potential claimants against the State "are from 1991 to 1994 and are not queuing up to enter the tribunal or the High Court. Neither do they present in large numbers at clinics for treatment. They got a different type of hepatitis C, type three, which is easily dealt with and has been dealt with to a great extent."

She said the figure arose from a review carried out by the Blood Transfusion Service Board.

"If that trawl throws up 60 people, that would be considered a large number. If a large number of these people exist, the floodgate has been open since the original hepatitis Act was introduced. Where are the hordes and floods of people? They do not exist," she said.

Ms Harney, who introduced an amendment yesterday to the legislation to allow additional tests to establish whether an individual has the infection, referred to a statement issued yesterday by Prof William Hall, head of the national virus reference laboratory at UCD and an international expert.

"He writes that the tests used have been shown in numerous peer-reviewed medical publications and independent test evaluations to have excellent sensitivity in the identification of hepatitis C infection in individuals with normal immunity."

People who did not have normal immunity could avail of another test know as PCR, the Minister said.

Fine Gael's health spokesman Dr Liam Twomey asked "is it really acceptable for the Tánaiste to rely on expert medical opinion she received 30 minutes before we are expected to vote on this legislation?

"Is it right that she should mention the pertinent legal issues, which she feels justify her decision to take this approach, 90 minutes before we vote on this legislation."

He said he had great respect for Prof Hall and "I know his opinions are worth considering".

"I do not think it is appropriate, however, for the professor's opinions to be waved in front of deputies, or for us to be expected to believe it like dumb country boys.

"The least the Tánaiste can do is make this evidence available to deputies so we can read it and form considered opinion of it," said Dr Twomey.

Catherine Murphy (Ind, Kildare North) referred to comments by the Tánaiste's party colleague, Liz O'Donnell, when the first hepatitis C legislation was introduced in 1997.

"She spoke of people having a live illness but who were not proving positive in the tests. Even then it was admitted there was a flaw that could not be ignored."