Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent) | Oireachtas source

Is the Department looking at that in the context of the straw man or is it being examined in the short term? The hope is that, eventually, the vast majority of people experiencing the symptoms of long Covid can return to the workforce. Introducing something in three or fours years’ time is of little use to the tens of thousands of people who could face this problem at the moment. The Department of Social Protection has been proactive in looking at this as an occupational illness. Bizarrely, the Department of Health is the one dragging its heels. Its staff are reaching an income cliff-edge in June, yet it does not seem to be making it the priority it should be. The difficulty is these people need that flexibility now. The medical advice and evidence is they need an incremental return to work. That flexibility is not there.

I accept that the definition of "illness benefit" requires that it is a long-term illness of a minimum of 12 months and that can be certified on your own. Doctors are certifying that in terms of the payment at the moment but there is an opportunity to assist these people to get back into the workforce far quicker. Rather than locking them out of employment and tying them into a welfare payment, there is an opportunity to use this as a novel solution to a novel illness, as we had to do with the pandemic unemployment payment and the enhanced illness benefit. The Department needs to urgently look at this and not wait for a straw man at some future date.