Vera Twomey has arrived in Dublin after her second 155 mile walk from Cork to Dublin in a bid to get Health Minister Simon Harris to allow her daughter have access to medicinal cannabis.
Vera Twomey has received a warm welcome to Dublin (and some pizza) as she arrived to Dáil Éireann and a crowd of supporters gathered on Kildare Street a little over an hour ago.
Vera’s seven-year-old daughter Ava Barry has a drug-resistant form of epilepsy called Dravet Syndrome which can cause her to have up to twenty seizures a day. HerFamily have followed the mum-of-four’s campaign for legislation that will allow Ava to get a prescription for medicinal marijuana, which she says will reduce her daughter’s seizures by ninety percent.
Suffering from a knee injury and struck down with tonsillitis, Vera has been using a wheelchair since the weekend. The Cork woman will now meet with Health Minister Simon Harris.
Yesterday, Harris released a statement on the issue,
“I am extremely conscious of the long and arduous journey Vera and her family have made to arrive at the Dáil. I have indicated my willingness to meet Vera and her husband Paul again…I have also honestly stated that it is not within my power to provide medicinal cannabis tomorrow.
I believe the course of action is for this matter to be addressed with the medical professionals involved in Ava’s care. I remain fully committed to establishing an access programme for cannabis-based treatments in Ireland and, in that regard, I welcome the early consideration by the Oireachtas Health Committee of the recent HPRA report, following a request from me, which will now take place tomorrow and will hear from Department and HPRA officials.”
Video: Vera Twomey / Facebook
Video: Vera Twomey / Facebook
Join the conversation on Twitter @HerFamilydotie
