59.—(1) F113[Subject to sections 20 and 23 of the Health (Pricing and Supply of Medical Goods) Act 2013, a] health board shall make arrangements for the supply without charge of drugs, medicines and medical and surgical appliances F114[, for the time being on the Reimbursement List within the meaning of section 2(1) of that Act,] to persons with full eligibility.

F115[(1A) Notwithstanding subsection (1) but subject to F116[subsections (1B) and (1C) and section 59A], a person with full eligibility who avails himself or herself of the service under subsection (1) shall be charged, by a community pharmacy contractor, an amount of F117[€1.50], or such other amount as may be determined by regulations made by the Minister under this section, per item supplied to that person on the prescription of a registered medical practitioner or registered dentist, or on the prescription of a registered nurse (being a person whose name is entered in the register of nurses maintained under section 27 of the Nurses Act 1985) who is entitled pursuant to any enactment to prescribe the drugs, medicines or medical or surgical appliances so supplied.

(1B) (a) F118[Subject to paragraphs (b) and (c) and subsection (3) of section 59A], the maximum aggregate amount payable in respect of items referred to in subsection (1A) supplied in a month to an adult person and his or her dependants shall be F117[€15.00] or such other amount as may be determined by regulations made by the Minister under this section.

(b) The Health Service Executive shall make arrangements for the refunding, crediting or otherwise relieving persons from the payment of amounts charged that exceed F118[the maximum aggregate amount referred to in paragraph (a) or subsection (3) of section 59A] and where, for any reason, such an excess amount is charged in respect of an adult person and his or her dependants, that excess amount shall be refunded or credited, or relief shall otherwise be granted, as the case may be, in relation to any such excess amount in accordance with such arrangements and subject to any regulations that the Minister may make under this section.

F119[(c) Where a child referred to in subsection (5B) of section 45 has full eligibility solely by reason of that subsection, the maximum aggregate amount referred to in paragraph (a) shall apply in respect of items referred to in subsection (1A) supplied in a month—

(i) to that child, or

(ii) in the case where an allowance referred to in subsection (5B) of section 45 is being paid to the same person in respect of more than one such child, to those children.]

(1C) A person who falls within any of the following classes shall not be charged an amount under subsection (1A):

(a) children who are in the care of the Health Service Executive under the Child Care Acts 1991 to 2007;

(b) persons to whom are supplied specified controlled drugs, within the meaning of the Misuse of Drugs (Supervision of Prescription and Supply of Methadone) Regulations 1998 or such other regulations as may be made by the Minister under section 5 of the Misuse of Drugs Act 1977 for the purpose of preventing the misuse of controlled drugs, in respect of those specified controlled drugs;

(c) persons who are of a class specified by the Minister in regulations made under this section.

(1D) Notwithstanding any other enactment, contract, arrangement, understanding, expectation, circular or other document, the payment that shall be made to a community pharmacy contractor in respect of services rendered by the community pharmacy contractor to or on behalf of the Health Service Executive in respect of the drugs, medicines and medical and surgical appliances dispensed by a registered pharmacist to persons and their dependants under this section shall be reduced by an amount equal to the amounts collectable by that community pharmacy contractor under subsection (1A), irrespective of whether those amounts are actually collected.

(1E) In subsections (1A) to (1D)—

"community pharmacy contractor" means a registered pharmacist, company or other body corporate that provides services to the Health Service Executive under an agreement made in accordance with conditions specified by the Minister in 1971 or 1996, as amended from time to time, for the provision of community pharmacy services to eligible persons under subsection (1);

"dependant", in relation to a person with full eligibility, includes an adult person with full eligibility, so long as that adult person is under the age of 21 years and receiving full time education and is wholly or mainly maintained by the first-mentioned person.]

(2) When a person with limited eligibility, or a person with full eligibility who does not avail himself of the service under subsection (1), satisfies the chief effective officer of the health board that, F120[in respect of a prescribed period and to a prescribed amount], he has incurred expenditure on drugs, medicines and medical and surgical appliances F114[, for the time being on the Reimbursement List within the meaning of section 2(1) of the Health (Pricing and Supply of Medical Goods) Act 2013,] which were obtained on the prescription of a registered medical practitioner F121[, or on the prescription of a registered nurse (being a person whose name is entered in the register of nurses maintained under section 27 of the Nurses Act 1985) entitled pursuant to any enactment to prescribe the drugs, medicines or medical or surgical appliances so obtained,] and were for the treatment of that person or his dependants, the health board shall make arrangements to meet the balance of the cost, or a proportion thereof (as may be prescribed) of the person's being supplied in respect of that period with such drugs, medicines and medical and surgical appliances.

(3) A health board may make arrangements for the supply without charge of drugs, medicines or medical and surgical appliances F114[, for the time being on the Reimbursement List within the meaning of section 2(1) of the Health (Pricing and Supply of Medical Goods) Act 2013,] to persons suffering from a prescribed disease or disability of a permanent or long-term nature.

F120[(4) (a) The Minister may make regulations—

(i) subject to paragraph (b), varying either or both of the amounts referred to in subsections (1A) and (1B)(a),

(ii) subject to paragraph (c), specifying other classes of persons who shall not be charged the amount referred to in subsection (1A) either in respect of all items supplied to persons of that class or specified categories of such items, and

(iii) where the Minister considers it necessary to do so, in relation to the refund, credit or other relief of amounts in excess of the maximum aggregate amount referred to in subsection (1B).

(b) The Minister shall make regulations under paragraph (a)(i) only where he or she is of opinion that such a variation is desirable, having regard to such of the following as he or she considers appropriate:

(i) information on the consumer price index made available by the Central Statistics Office from time to time;

(ii) recent information on the aggregate of the amounts expended, and the number of items in respect of which those amounts were expended, by the Health Service Executive in providing the service under subsection (1);

(iii) the medical needs of, and the financial burden on, persons who avail themselves of the service under subsection (1);

(iv) the necessity of controlling expenditure in relation to the provision by the State of health services.

(c) The Minister shall make regulations under paragraph (a)(ii) only where he or she is of opinion that not to charge the amount referred to in subsection (1A) to such a class is just and equitable in the circumstances, having regard to such of the following as he or she considers appropriate:

(i) the particular medical condition, disability or medical needs of persons of that class;

(ii) the number of prescription items required in respect of the condition, disability or medical needs referred to in subparagraph (i);

(iii) recent information on the aggregate of the amounts expended, and the number of items in respect of which those amounts were expended, by the Health Service Executive in providing the service under subsection (1), either generally or in respect of persons of that class;

(iv) the necessity of controlling expenditure in relation to the provision by the State of health services;

(v) whether the overall financial situation of all, or substantially all, of the persons of that class is significantly worse than that of other persons who are charged amounts under subsection (1A).

(d) Regulations under this section shall be made with the consent of the Minister for Finance.]

F114[(5) Nothing in this section shall be construed to affect the operation of section 26 of the Health (Pricing and Supply of Medical Goods) Act 2013.]