Children living in pain spending years lingering on lists
“Its over to our Dáil colleagues now to take the torch and pass the Scoliosis Bill for young people who have waited much too long for timely access to high quality care” – McDowell
The Seanad this afternoon (Wednesday 2nd July 2025) passed a Private Members Bill tabled by Senator Michael McDowell and colleagues in the Seanad Independent Group.
As the Scoliosis Bill was passed unopposed and unamended at Report and Final Stages Senator McDowell said it was now incumbent on members of Dáil Éireann to work speedily to ensure urgent and effective care for scoliosis patients who have waited far too long to have their treatment rights vindicated, by enacting the Bill.
Speaking following the passing of the Bill, Senator McDowell said “We have heard for too many years of the plight of children and young people with scoliosis whose lives are on hold for the want of corrective care. For so many of these, that intervention has come too late or not at all”.
He continued “As parliamentarians who strive to protect equally all the children of our State it is now essential that there is accountability in the provision of scoliosis services and to speak up for those children and families in a practical way by imposing legally enforceable statutory obligations on the HSE for true and meaningful delivery – nothing less will do”.
The Bill is simple and mandates that:
The Health Service Executive shall establish and maintain a national treatment service for the timely and effective inpatient and outpatient treatment of scoliosis within the State at such hospitals and other clinics and centres as it may designate for the timely detection, assessment and remedial treatment for all children and adults normally resident in the State”.
It further imposes statutory duties and powers on the HSE in terms of resources, facilities, outsourcing and reporting mechanisms.
Senator McDowell stated “what gets measured gets done – it is time now to get on with the work that has been promised by successive ministers and administrations”.
At the Oireachtas Health Committee earlier today Senator Tom Clonan, a co-sponsor of the Bill who is a carer and disabilities advocate questioned HSE chief Bernard Gloster as to whether he had faith in the Board of Childrens Health Ireland (CHI) to deliver on scoliosis services and long waiting lists. Mr Gloster expressed faith in the new CEO Lucy Nugent to make progress on the issues.
- Ends
Notes to editors:
The Bill is available here:
Health (Scoliosis Treatment Services) Bill 2024 – No. 44 of 2024 – Houses of the Oireachtas