Vera Twomey's plea to fund Ava’s medication

Vera Twomey is terrified her daughter will revert to a life of “suffering and seizures” if the State continues to refuse to reimburse transformative cannabis oil treatments.

Ms Twomey, from Aghabullogue, Co Cork, held a press conference yesterday calling on Health Minister Simon Harris to include her daughter’s medication under the long-term illness (LTI) scheme.

Ava, 8, has Dravet’s Syndrome, a severe form of epilepsy which, in the past, has led to multiple daily seizures. On one occasion, Ava suffered a heart attack after 17 seizures in an eight-hour period.