Health Services Regulations, 1971

• Jurisdiction: Ireland
• Year: 1971
• Citation: IR SI 105/1971

S.I. No. 105 of 1971.
HEALTH SERVICES REGULATIONS, 1971.
The Minister for Health, in exercise of the powers conferred on him by section 5 of the Health Act, 1947 (No. 28 of 1947) and by sections 53 , 54 and 72 of the Health Act, 1970 (No. 1 of 1970) hereby makes the following Regulations:
	1 Citation.	1. These Regulations may be cited as the Health Services Regulations, 1971.
	2 Definitions.	2. In these Regulations—
"the Act" means the Health Act, 1970 ;
"the Minister" means the Minister for Health.
	3 Commencement.	3. These Regulations shall come into operation on 1st day of April, 1971.
	4 Revocations.	4. The Regulations specified in the Schedule hereto are hereby revoked to the extent specified therein.
	5 Records.	5. (1) A health board and its officers shall keep such records as may be specified by the Minister from time to time or in the absence of such specification, as may be determined by the health board, in relation to the services made available under Part IV of the Act.
(2) Any clinical records compiled or any document obtained under these Regulations shall be treated in a confidential manner and, save as provided in subarticle (5) of this article, shall not, without the consent in writing of the patient, be disclosed in such a manner as to make identification of the patient possible.
(3) When any record, claim, application, report or other communication relating to the giving of services to a person in accordance with these Regulations is sent by post, it shall be enclosed in a sealed envelope.
(4) Nothing in this article shall be construed as preventing the inspection by a registered medical practitioner authorised by the chief executive officer of the health board or by the Minister of the clinical records kept in pursuance of these Regulations where the written consent of the patient has been obtained.
(5) Where the Minister certifies in respect of clinical records compiled under these Regulations and held by any particular medical practitioner or in relation to any particular patient that it would not in his opinion be in the interest of the common good to seek the consent referred to in subarticles (2) and (4) of this article a registered medical practitioner authorised by the Minister may inspect such records.
(6) Where a certificate under subarticle (5) of this article has been given in respect of any particular clinical records by the Minister and the medical practitioner holding such records is of opinion that the patient to whom the records relate should be informed of the giving of the certificate such medical practitioner may so inform such patient.
(7) The consent referred to in subarticles (2) and (4) of this article may, in the case of a minor, be given by a parent or guardian and, in the case of a deceased person, may be given by the spouse of such person, or if there is no spouse, by any of the next of kin of such person or by his personal representative.
	6 Eligibility for certain services.	6. (1) In this article—
"the Act of 1952" means the Social Welfare Act, 1952 (No. 11 of 1952 ), as amended;
"contribution year" means a contribution year prescribed under section 2 (1) of the Act of 1952;
"employment contribution" includes an employment contribution as referred to in section 5 of the Act of 1952 and a contribution paid outside the State for the time being treated as an employment contribution in pursuance of any reciprocal arrangements under the Act of 1952 relating to disability benefit and maternity benefit;
"pensionable age" has the meaning assigned to it in the Act of 1952;
"relevant date" means the date of application for the relevant services under the Act or, in the case of a person who has attained pensionable age, the day before the date of his attaining pensionable age;
"relevant period" means the period commencing at the beginning of the last but one complete contribution year before the relevant date and ending at the relevant date;
"voluntary contribution" and "voluntary contributor" have the meanings assigned to them in the Act of 1952.
(2) Subject to subarticle (3), the following persons shall be the persons for whom services shall be made available under sections 52 (1), 56 (2), 62 (1) or 63 (1) of the Act—
(a) persons with full eligibility,
(b) any person insured under the Act of 1952 in respect of whom in the relevant period an employment contribution is paid, payable or credited in accordance with the provisions of the...