US labs threaten to quit CervicalCheck scheme
The US labs contracted to carry out the cervical check screening have threatened to quit Ireland - placing the CervicalCheck scheme into doubt.
The issue centres on a row with the state over compensation for medical negligence according to the Sunday Business Post.
The current contract expires in October, and under its terms the labs accept liability for any medical negligence costs incurred under the scheme.
They now want the Irish tax-payer to underwrite those costs - a move which has given rise to fears within the HSE that the service could collapse.
The paper says the health service is working on a contingency plan, however the ongoing controversy over the cervical programme here has made it difficult to bring other overseas labs on board.
Earlier: Harris: Women and families affected will hear Scally report before publication
The women and families affected by the Cervical Check crisis will be formally briefed on the Scally report, before it is published.
That is the promise from Health Minister Simon Harris, who has confirmed he is meeting the report's author tomorrow, before bringing it to cabinet on Wednesday.
Speaking at the Kennedy Summer School in Wexford, Minister Harris said he is confident lessons can be learned.
"I look forward to having an opportunity to meet Dr Scally, for him to brief me on his report, for him to talk me through his report and most importantly his recommendations, said Minister Harris.
"I'm very clear that the people who should hear about this report before it is published are the women who have been impacted and their families and I know Dr Scally is eager for that to happen."
