Number of people getting free or subsidised ADHD medication more than doubles in five years
The number of people receiving medication for ADHD under free or subsidised drug schemes has surged by 150% since the beginning of the covid pandemic, costing more than €30m in the past five years.
A total of 25,715 patients were prescribed medication for the neurodevelopmental disorder on the medical card or other public health schemes last year, compared to 10,327 in 2020.
The annual cost of the medication, which is most often a stimulant called methylphenidate, also more than doubled during that period, rising from €4.1m in 2020 to €9.3m last year.
Last year, 11,357 patients were prescribed drugs for ADHD on the medical card, while 12,105 patients who were medicated for the disorder received reimbursements under the Drugs Payment Scheme (DPS). A further 2,253 people received medication for ADHD under the Long-Term Illness (LTI) scheme.
Galway was the Local Health Office (LHO) area with the highest number of patients who were prescribed ADHD drugs under the medical card scheme last year, with 833. This was followed by Laois-Offaly, where 557 medical card holders received the medication.
The LHO area with the highest number of patients who received reimbursements for ADHD medication under the DPS in 2024 was Dublin South East, with 1,261, followed by Dun Laoghaire with 818.
Researchers said there was a 'strong association' between the impact of the pandemic and the worsening of ADHD symptoms, which include inattention, hyperactivity, and emotional dysregulation.
Earlier this year, researchers at the University of Huddersfield and Aston University attributed a reported rise in ADHD diagnoses since the pandemic to increased awareness of the disorder via social media.
They also said there was a 'strong association' between the impact of the pandemic and the worsening of ADHD symptoms, which include inattention, hyperactivity, and emotional dysregulation.
Drugs used to treat the disorder include methylphenidate, which is better known by the brand names Ritalin, Concerta and Delmosart, as well as two other stimulants: dexamfetamine and lisdexamfetamine.
In April, Government Chief Whip Mary Butler, the minister of state with responsibility for mental health, suggested that a surge in young children with ADHD was driving waiting lists for Camhs.
Records released under freedom of information show that the number of patients prescribed medication for ADHD on the medical card scheme has increased by 69% since 2020.
The number of people prescribed ADHD on the DPS increased by 655% from 1,604 to 12,105 during the same period, while the number of patients receiving ADHD drugs on the LTI scheme increased by 12%.
The LHO area with the lowest number of patients prescribed medication for ADHD under the medical card scheme last year was West Cork, with 79. It was also the lowest LHO area under the LTI scheme, with seven.
A total of 80 patients on the DPS were prescribed ADHD drugs in Roscommon in 2024, according to the records released by the Health Service Executive (HSE).
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Examiner
3 days ago
- Irish Examiner
Number of people getting free or subsidised ADHD medication more than doubles in five years
The number of people receiving medication for ADHD under free or subsidised drug schemes has surged by 150% since the beginning of the covid pandemic, costing more than €30m in the past five years. A total of 25,715 patients were prescribed medication for the neurodevelopmental disorder on the medical card or other public health schemes last year, compared to 10,327 in 2020. The annual cost of the medication, which is most often a stimulant called methylphenidate, also more than doubled during that period, rising from €4.1m in 2020 to €9.3m last year. Last year, 11,357 patients were prescribed drugs for ADHD on the medical card, while 12,105 patients who were medicated for the disorder received reimbursements under the Drugs Payment Scheme (DPS). A further 2,253 people received medication for ADHD under the Long-Term Illness (LTI) scheme. Galway was the Local Health Office (LHO) area with the highest number of patients who were prescribed ADHD drugs under the medical card scheme last year, with 833. This was followed by Laois-Offaly, where 557 medical card holders received the medication. The LHO area with the highest number of patients who received reimbursements for ADHD medication under the DPS in 2024 was Dublin South East, with 1,261, followed by Dun Laoghaire with 818. Researchers said there was a 'strong association' between the impact of the pandemic and the worsening of ADHD symptoms, which include inattention, hyperactivity, and emotional dysregulation. Earlier this year, researchers at the University of Huddersfield and Aston University attributed a reported rise in ADHD diagnoses since the pandemic to increased awareness of the disorder via social media. They also said there was a 'strong association' between the impact of the pandemic and the worsening of ADHD symptoms, which include inattention, hyperactivity, and emotional dysregulation. Drugs used to treat the disorder include methylphenidate, which is better known by the brand names Ritalin, Concerta and Delmosart, as well as two other stimulants: dexamfetamine and lisdexamfetamine. In April, Government Chief Whip Mary Butler, the minister of state with responsibility for mental health, suggested that a surge in young children with ADHD was driving waiting lists for Camhs. Records released under freedom of information show that the number of patients prescribed medication for ADHD on the medical card scheme has increased by 69% since 2020. The number of people prescribed ADHD on the DPS increased by 655% from 1,604 to 12,105 during the same period, while the number of patients receiving ADHD drugs on the LTI scheme increased by 12%. The LHO area with the lowest number of patients prescribed medication for ADHD under the medical card scheme last year was West Cork, with 79. It was also the lowest LHO area under the LTI scheme, with seven. A total of 80 patients on the DPS were prescribed ADHD drugs in Roscommon in 2024, according to the records released by the Health Service Executive (HSE).
Irish Examiner
3 days ago
- Irish Examiner
HSE apologises for two-year delay in North Kerry children's mental health review
The HSE has apologised for the fact that a review of 300 children in mental health services in North Kerry has taken two years and is still not complete. The report is only at draft stage, minister of state for mental health Mary Butler told the Oireachtas Health Committee on Wednesday morning. She also said that 'red flags' identified in children's care have already led to individual open disclosure meetings between families and the HSE. After the committee, a spokeswoman for HSE Southwest said: 'We sincerely regret that this review process has taken longer than we initially hoped, and we apologise to the young people involved and their families.' She said it is not yet possible to give a definitive completion date. 'It is important to point out that all individual young people and families have already been told what the review team found in relation to their care,' she said. 'The information was provided in person at individual open disclosure meetings detailing the full clinical details available in relation to the cases involved where necessary.' The final report will contain recommendations from Dr Colette Halpin and her expert team, as well as relevant clinical information. The look-back review was set up after the shocking findings from the Maskey Report on CAMHS in South Kerry, which included evidence of 'significant harm' caused to 46 children among the 240 whose care was deemed substandard.
Irish Daily Mirror
4 days ago
- Irish Daily Mirror
Weight-loss injections could be made cheaper by end of the year, Minister says
Some drugs used for weight loss could be free or have their cost capped as early this year, Health Minister Jennifer Carroll MacNeill has confirmed. She also vowed a crackdown on vapes and to 'eradicate' tobacco pouches. Weight loss jab Mounjaro, which is also used to treat type two diabetics, became available in the UK this week under the NHS. In response to questions on whether Ireland would support the free rollout of the drug for Irish weight-loss patients, Minister Carroll MacNeill confirmed that it would be available through the HSE's reimbursement schemes as soon as the last quarter of 2025. Saxenda, another injection that can be used for weight loss, has been on the scheme since January 2023. This includes the Medical Card Scheme, where patients receive their prescription for free and the Drugs Payment Scheme, where the cost of prescriptions are capped at €80 per month. Ms Carroll MacNeill said: 'Saxenda is available under the reimbursement scheme already. 'Mountjaro is going through the reimbursement process so I'd expect an outcome of that maybe quarter four of this year, quarter one of next year. 'But it's already the case that one of those drugs is available under the reimbursement scheme and therefore is available to medical card patients.' Ms Carroll MacNeill, who was speaking at the World Conference on Tobacco Control, also vowed that Ireland will crack down on coloured and flavoured vapes and attempt to 'eradicate' tobacco pouches. Despite Cabinet approving plans in September 2024 to ban disposable vapes and flavours, there is still no date for the implementation of the plans. However, the Fine Gael Minister for Dun Laoghaire said that the Government will prioritise the new rule as part of Ireland's EU Presidency from July 2026. She said: 'The nicotine companies find different ways of trying to - now that the tobacco has been so stamped down - get children addicted to nicotine. 'Why there needs to be, like a coconut pineapple flavour [vape] is absolutely beyond me. Why it needs to match a young girl's handbag or any of those different attractive things to socialise and normalise what is essentially an addiction to a drug. 'The nicotine pouches are particularly invidious and have the capacity to get very high doses of nicotine to children in very subtle ways, but very, very quickly. We're working to try to eradicate them. 'We're trying to reopen the tobacco directive and have a focus of that as our of our EU presidency to reopen the tobacco directive to recognise that actually the world has moved on since that was agreed, that it's not just about tobacco, it's about the other nicotine projects. 'The Taoiseach will be helping me to make sure that that's a priority for Ireland for the presidency. 'One of the issues there is where one country takes lots of steps to ban different products. It comes so easily across the border from another EU member states that we have to take a harmonised approach on it from a public health perspective.' Elsewhere, Minister Carroll MacNeill defended naming the new National Children's Hospital 'The National Children's Hospital'. She said it followed 'engagement with the youth advisory groups, with parents, with patients, and that is the name that they chose'. She confirmed that there was a 'pretty nominal' cost to coming up with the name but could not confirm what it was. The Irish Mirror submitted queries to the Department of Health on the cost.
