Minister for Public Health, Wellbeing and the National Drugs Strategy announces funding for drugs and Inclusion Health for 2026

Press Release | Friday 10 October 2025

Minister for Public Health, Wellbeing and the National Drugs Strategy announces funding for drugs and Inclusion Health for 2026

The Minister for Public Health, Wellbeing and the National Drugs Strategy Jennifer Murnane O’Connor TD has today announced additional €11 million in recurring funding for drugs and inclusion health services in Budget 2026.

The allocation includes €4 million for service enhancement measures and will address regional disparities in availability of drug and inclusion health services, with a strong focus on the provision of services in disadvantaged and rural areas. It also aims to enhance prevention measures, including through early intervention measures to improve child health and wellbeing.

Highlights include:

• Enhanced capacity in drug services for under-served populations, including residential treatment and early intervention for young people.
• Strategic workforce development plan for staff working in drug services across all six health regions.
• Expansion of health services for people who are homeless, including national in-reach care and case management for those in emergency accommodation and interventions for women at risk of homelessness.
• Access to the medication Buprenorphine, enabling treatment of an additional 200 people with opioid dependence.
• Expansion of the innovative Brighter Beginnings programme for Traveller child health to two new health regions.
• Provision of additional health supports for refugees and migrants.

An allocation of €100,000 will support a hospital monitoring system for drug overdose. This system will help the HSE to identify non-fatal and fatal drug overdoses at a faster pace, and issue risk communications and emergency plans as appropriate. This funding will also provide interventions for participants in the Dublin drug treatment court, which will aim to increase engagement and support those who have more complex issues to successfully complete the programme.

In addition, the Minister has secured funding of €2 million for 2026 and 2027 for two projects under the Dormant Accounts Fund.

Minister Murnane O’Connor said:

“The additional funding I have secured for 2026 will address disparities in the availability of and access to drugs and inclusion health services across the six HSE health regions. The new measures will drive health equity for groups at risk of poverty and social exclusion and enhance the health and wellbeing of all the people living in Ireland.

“We are paving the way for the implementation of our new national drugs strategy, expanding capacity in services all across the country and rolling out successful pilot initiatives to new areas.

“I want to acknowledge the vital role played by the staff who deliver inclusion health services, and who provide essential support to people enduring challenging vulnerabilities. It is fitting that we recognise their contribution and ensure that they have the resources, training and support required to continuing delivering this service into the future.

“I wish to acknowledge the complementary measures proposed by my colleague, the Minister for Mental Health, Mary Butler TD. These include the expansion of dual diagnosis services for people with both mental health issues and problem drug use, and new suicide reduction initiatives for the Traveller community.”

Further details of the measures for drugs and inclusion health are set out in the Budget 2026 factsheet.

ENDS