Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Tuesday, 30 March 2021

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health

Operation of the Medical Card Scheme: Discussion

Photo of Seán CroweSeán Crowe (Dublin South West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I have a couple of questions. Several members have expressed frustration this morning regarding access to services for medical card holders. Earlier we heard about a crisis with regard to the number of dentists in the GMS. Do we know exactly how many dentists have left the scheme? What do patients of dentists who have left the scheme do? Do they move to another dentist or do they contact the Department to alert them to the fact that their dentist is not operating under the scheme? Do the witnesses have any advice for people who are in that situation who may be listening this morning? A similar situation pertains with chiropodists, apparently. We have been told that a lot of chiropodists are leaving the scheme. Do we have exact numbers in that regard?

A number of years ago ease of access to medical cards depended on geographical location, for historic reasons. Has that changed? In 2014 an expert panel conducted a review of medical card eligibility under the GMS and made several recommendations. Were those recommendations fully implemented?

Another area of concern relates to medical cards for those who are terminally ill. Thankfully, the number of such people making applications is low but is there a red-flag process or any way within the system of fast-tracking those applications?

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