Mary Seery Kearney (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

May I cut across Dr. Morgan? We have a similar vision, which is great. However, using the word "accessing" implies that the imperative to act is on the parent. When a child is born with obvious complex needs, surely the system in our public hospitals should immediately trigger in such a way that the system comes to the parent, who is already trying to cope with all that is before them with the best will in the world. Those to whom I have spoken have told me that they gave birth and there was immediate and beautiful support in the hospital, to be fair, but that there is then silence and one must wait until applying for a medical card, for which there is a six-month delay. One must to prove disability in order to get the medical card.