Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The Minister, Deputy Reilly, stated cancer can range from a desperate diagnosis to not such a bad diagnosis. He confirmed it is now Government policy not to issue medical cards to cancer patients unless they are terminally ill. This is the point I made. It is this statement which has caused such outrage and anger.

I read extracts from the blog I referred to yesterday. The person who wrote it stated her not such a bad diagnosis brought her to her knees in ways one could only know if one had been handed one. She stated the medical card was the one saving grace in her life and still is. She details the doctors, pills and antibiotics and describes how it was such a financial hell. She was not terminally ill and is 14 months clear of cancer.

The Minister and HSE have stated one will only receive a discretionary medical card if one is terminally ill with cancer and any other cancer diagnosis no longer qualifies. The discretionary medical card was available for people with cancer and other life-threatening illnesses and for those who did not have cancer but who had long-term chronic illnesses. The reason was the necessity for frequent visits to doctors and dependence on a significant amount of medication.

Will the Taoiseach reverse this policy on cancer and discretionary medical cards and stop the ongoing underhand campaign to reduce the number of discretionary medical cards being issued, which was signalled in the budget when the eligibility thresholds were raised and it was stated 20,000 cards would be taken out of the system this year? It was under the radar and buried in the detailed documentation of the budget. People are now beginning to see it with letters coming in the door taking medical cards from them. This is the reality of life on the ground in terms of discretionary medical cards and I ask the Taoiseach to reverse this policy.

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