Mr. Seamus McCarthy:

I was just going to go back to that. In the certificate I draw attention to note 35, which elaborates on the issue. I will summarise it. Note 35 states that medical cards were not renewed for 2.7% of renewal applications received in 2012 because the applicants no longer satisfied the eligibility criteria. At the point at which a person who had been a medical card holder applied for its renewal at the end of the normal cycle, the HSE review found that 2.7% of them had become ineligible. The likelihood is that at least some of those were not eligible for a medical card during the period in which they held one. That is the element that has not been quantified. It is quite difficult to project backwards to find out at what point somebody ceased to be eligible for a medical card.

There was an additional group involved - again, this is outlined in more detail in note 35. Eligibility for medical cards was removed for 0.8% of the total medical card population in 2012 following a request from the HSE for card holders to confirm their residence in the State in cases in which a medical card had been inactive for significant periods. Essentially, the HSE, in a review of medical cards, selected the group of individuals whose cards had had no transactions or charges other than the flat rate payment and asked those people to confirm their details of residence in the State. I do not recall the number of individuals who lost their eligibility but it represented 0.8% of the total number of medical cards held. There are issues that seem to indicate that there is a material level of card holding by individuals who are not currently eligible, and it is a challenge for the HSE to put a precise value on this.

This matter does not affect the charges on the account. We are satisfied that the amount paid out is correct. It is more an irregularity, akin to overpayments or excess payments in the area of social protection.