The failure to set up a separate evaluation process for orphan drugs and the lack of opportunity for patient engagement when considering their reimbursement has been criticised by politicians from all parties.

Maria Gilroy’s diet prevents her consuming foods most of us take for granted — meat, fish, poultry, cheese, milk, bread, flour, rice, pasta, yoghurt, chocolate.

Patients set to lose access to a drug the State has refused to reimburse have been granted a six-month reprieve as the manufacturer says it will continue to supply it free of charge.

John Hannan has been a ‘guinea pig’ for Respreeza for 11 years. Now, due to the reported €84k-a-year cost, he faces losing access to a drug that’s proven a lifesaver. He talks to Health Correspondent Catherine Shanahan

Catherine Shanahan meets some of the people who have fought to make the cystic fibrosis drug Orkambi available in Ireland.

Cystic Fibrosis Ireland (CFI) has reiterated its call to Government to swiftly conclude discussions with the manufacturer of a life-changing drug so that more than 500 patients can potentially benefit from the treatment.

Cystic fibrosis sufferers and supporters will converge on the Dáil today to protest at the delay in striking a deal with the manufacturers of a life-changing drug that treats the underlying cause of the disease.

Health Minister Simon Harris says he is not going to be “bullied or intimidated” or have taxpayers extorted by a drug company that holds the fate of people with cystic fibrosis in their hands.

The health minister has written to his ministerial counterparts in England, Scotland, Canada and Australia proposing they work together to access a new cystic fibrosis wonder drug at a “cost-effective price”.

The manufacturer of a drug aimed at cystic fibrosis sufferers has said it has still not received an update from the HSE over whether or not funding for it will be recommended.

There are calls for the company behind a Cystic Fibrosis drug to put their patients before profits.

Eoin Ó Broin hadn’t read the memo: How to retrieve potentially embarrassing emails after accidentally clicking “send”.

Cystic Fibrosis Ireland has expressed dismay at a recommendation to the HSE that a drug to treat the condition is not “cost-effective”.

One of the companies which makes new cancer drugs, under review by the HSE for possible approval, is extending its compassionate access programme for people with advanced lung cancer for one month.

Taoiseach Enda Kenny has denied that the Government has a say on whether a groundbreaking drug for cystic fibrosis sufferers can be paid for, as he said it was a matter for health chiefs.

Obese patients in danger of developing diabetes reduced their risk by almost 80% under a treatment regime involving diet, exercise, and a drug — compared to those on a diet and exercise programme alone, a study has found.

The number of children struck by a debilitating virus has risen fivefold since the start of 2015 — two years after Department of Health advisors recommended vaccinating against it.

A potentially live-saving liver cancer drug that costs €560 per tablet will be made available to more than 100 seriously ill patients six months after doctors treating the disease asked the Government to fund it.

Cancer campaigners from every constituency in Ireland have signed a petition calling on the Government to honour its commitment to extend free breast screening to women aged 65 to 69 in 2014.

A breast cancer drug has shown "unprecedented" benefits in extending lives in a clinical trial and experts urged its widespread use for women with an aggressive form of the disease.

The drugs companies behind two new cancer treatments deemed too expensive for use in Ireland have been told to lower their prices if they want their product prescribed.

Every time a new wonder drug for treating cancer comes on the market, the hopes of patients seeking a miracle cure are inevitably raised, only to be dashed amid controversy over the exorbitant cost of treatment.

A man whose survival depends on a double lung transplant has called on the HSE to renegotiate the price of a life-prolonging drug that has been branded too expensive to use.

A patients’ lobby group says negotiations on the price of a life-changing cystic fibrosis drug must not be allowed to drag on.

A key feature of the new agreement between the Irish Pharmaceutical Healthcare Association, the HSE, and Department of Health, announced last week, is the promise of faster access to medicines once they have been proven to be cost-effective.

A new prostate cancer treatment has been rejected for use in Ireland.

Aspirin is the most commonly prescribed drug under the general medical card scheme (GMS), with 2.5 million scripts written each year at a cost of €5.1m.

A POTENTIALLY life-saving breast cancer test, which the HSE initially said did not represent value for money, has been given the green light by the state after the drug firm involved significantly lowered the cost.

THE final decision on whether public patients will be able to access a breast cancer test that could save up to 500 women from having to endure chemotherapy every 12 months is not expected until towards the end of this year.

A new test hailed by breast cancer experts as a medical breakthrough won't be offered to public patients because of the costs involved, it has been reported.

PHARMACISTS say they are willing to help the Government reduce the cost of the state’s medicines bill.

A DRUG company study claims to prove it makes economic sense for Ireland to begin a national vaccination programme against cervical cancer.

THE controversial multiple sclerosis drug Tysabri is a step closer to becoming available for medical card patients.

A VACCINATION against pneumococcal disease, which claims 130 lives in Ireland every year, is expected to be included in the country’s childhood immunisation scheme.

THE health service is spending €90 million a year on cholesterol-lowering drugs for non-medical card holders — but the good news is they represent value for money.