A response from Minister Stephen Donnelly was read out in the Seanad today following a question from Senator Jerry Buttimer.
Senator Buttimer told the chamber that the service has been available for just two weeks since the start of the year and says it's unacceptable that the service isn't in operation in Cork.
The Emergency Motorcycle Response Unit was first trialled in Cork in October 2018, however the two paramedics in the unit were redeployed to support the Ambulance Service during the pandemic.
Senator Jerry Buttimer has called on the Health Minister to give a concrete date for the unit to become operational again:
"This could linger in the HSE never-never land, and could never happen, and be never resumed and we want to avoid that because, as you said Minister, and as I've said, the HSE paramedic motorbike unit saves lives. If we can, in Dublin, allow a situation where because of staff issues they're allowed to continue, then the same should apply in Cork. And I would ask for equity of treatment. But more importantly, it's about saving lives. It's about seven days a week, 24 hours a day, having this unit available."
