HSE now funding 'life-changing' diabetes device

Aoife Willis said the device has allowed her to return to long-distance running and rowing. Picture: Brendan Gleeson

A 'life-changing' medical device which supports people with Type 1 diabetes and which had cost €120 a month is now being funded by the HSE. 

The move has been welcomed by patients and advocates, with one Limerick woman describing how the device has allowed her to return to long-distance running and rowing.

The device for diabetes management, the FreeStyle Libre 2 system manufactured by Abbott, is a continuous glucose monitor which allows patients better understand their condition.

Aoife Willis was diagnosed in 2013 and used to monitor her blood sugar levels using the finger prick test, which she said only offered limited help. “It gives you a number, a very very small bit of information,” she said.

“It tells you what you are at that given moment in time, but it doesn’t tell you ‘are you going up, are you going down or are you steady’.” 

Always anxious about her condition she found herself carrying food, water, glucose barometer set and other equipment daily. “I was showing up to Park runs with a bag on my bag, that’s a 5km and I still needed a bag on my back carrying stuff,” she said.

In 2020, as she struggled with sports, a friend told her about what was then the Freestyle Libre 1 system. A sensor worn on the upper arm sends real-time glucose readings to a linked smartphone app.

Aoife Willis: “It was €60 every two weeks, I had to think about it, I had to sit down and go ‘can I or can’t I afford it’.” Picture: Brendan Gleeson

“It was €60 every two weeks, I had to think about it, I had to sit down and go ‘can I or can’t I afford it’,” she said.

Some friends were aghast at the cost, but she told them: “Lads the benefit of this just outweighs everything—the peace of mind the information brought.” That year she went from struggling with 5km runs to completing a half-marathon by December.

“People talk, within diabetes, about the metaphorical weight of the disease,” she said. “It never let up (for me) and then it did let up.”  This was her personal experience, she said. 

She asked her HSE diabetes service why they had not told her about this, and recalls: "They actually said to me it was because of the cost, it is like they assumed I wouldn’t be in a position to fund it myself.” 

Now an ambassador for the device with Abbott, she had managed to negotiate HSE financial support shortly before the recent announcement. “(That was) after a long battle,” she said, tears in her eyes, describing the national decision as “brilliant”.

Aoife Willis was diagnosed in 2013 and used to monitor her blood sugar levels using the finger prick test, which she said only offered limited help. Picture: Brendan Gleeson

Diabetes Ireland CEO, Kieran O’Leary, has welcomed the HSE decision to fund the device.

He said they called for this since 2016, saying: “The cost of self-funding the system has been a barrier and has left some people unable to access the technology and its benefits.”

Erin Dolan

In Co Clare, mother-of-two Erin Dolan said she was “elated” at the HSE decision. Diagnosed as a child of 10, she said her fingers had become so calloused from doing the finger-prick tests it was difficult to get readings.

She is also a fan of the detailed reports the Freestyle Libre 2 produces. “You can go to the Libre link app on your smartphone and get access to those readings,” she said.

“Having minute-to-minute data is important because in life so many things happen. You think a 10-minute lag or 15-minute lag isn’t a big difference but in the life of a person with diabetes it is a huge difference.” 

It also helps her manage nutrition, as she says: “I’m a big foodie, and I definitely advocate for that as well. Having access to glucose readings in your reports you have a better understanding of what’s going on and how food is impacting your glucose numbers.” 

She works in marketing and is now also an ambassador for the device. “I self-funded the Freestyle Libre before and obviously it was an extra expense I had to balance with my other finances,” she said.

The FreeStyle Libre 2 is a continuous glucose monitor which allows patients better understand their condition. Picture: Brendan Gleeson

“It was a little bit of a financial strain, I knew it was going to be an investment in my health.” 

She is also a diabetes healthcoach (@crazyaboutdiabetes on Instagram) and said costs “definitely” come up in discussions with her clients.

“Here in Ireland we have very restricted access to diabetes technology,” she said. “It’s quite hard to obtain it or even have a reason you should have this.”

The HSE decision was linked to the budget impact associated with use of Continuous Glucose Monitoring (CGM) sensors, a spokeswoman said. It also followed a health technology assessment carried out by the regulators Hiqa. 

The scheme applies to all sensors on a national reimbursement list. Hospital consultants can apply for reimbursement approval for suitable patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus, she said.