Kathleen Lynch (Cork North Central, Labour) | Oireachtas source

Approximately 22,000 people are in receipt of financial assistance under the nursing homes support scheme, with another 900 approved but not yet in payment. This arises for various reasons and Deputy O'Dea knows that as well as I do. In 2013, home help hours were not decimated. A total of 10.3 million hours of home help will be delivered to over 50,000 clients, exactly the same as last year with an additional almost 10,870 people to receive home care packages. I hope the review of the fair deal scheme will move more in that direction.

Government policy is to support older people to live in dignity and independence in their own homes and communities for as long as possible and to support access to quality long-term residential care where necessary. The nursing homes support scheme began on 27 October 2009. The purpose of the scheme is to provide financial support for people assessed as needing long-term nursing home care. Since 27 October 2009, the nursing homes support scheme is the single funded means of accessing long-term nursing home care for all new entrants. In line with a commitment given when the scheme was launched, a review is now under way to examine its sustainability, taking account of Government policy, relevant demographic trends and the current fiscal situation as well as to have costed recommendations relating to how the scheme should operate in the short to medium term.

The objective is to ensure it best supports Government policy and how residential and community provision will be balanced as part of an overall approach. The Department of Health has carried out a public consultation to inform the review and it is expected the review itself will be completed by early 2014. Overall, 43% of the total population holds a medical card or a GP visit card. One must accept this is due to the fact that the economy collapsed and hundreds of thousands of people were put out of work. Such cards ensure access to a GP service without charges at the point of use. As for the elderly, well over 90% of people aged 70 years and over hold a medical card or a GP visit card. Deputies will be aware that under budget 2014, it was announced that the gross income thresholds for the over-70s medical card will be reduced. However, it should be noted that eight out of every ten people aged 70 and over will be completely unaffected by the changes in the over-70s medical card income limits. An individual earning a gross income up to €500 per week or a couple with a gross income of up to €900 per week will continue to qualify for a medical card. To be clear, a person over 70 with a gross income of €26,000 or an over-70s couple with a gross income of €47,000 per year will not be affected by the budget change. The budget changes ensure that no one aged over 70 who currently has a medical card will lose access to a GP service as they will receive GP visit cards. Individuals aged over 70 years whose gross income does not exceed €36,000 per year and couples whose income does not exceed €72,000 per year will retain their GP access.

To assist in counteracting recent concerns raised, my colleague, the Minister for Health, Deputy Reilly, has asked the Health Service Executive, HSE, to draw up a communications plan to inform the public about the recent changes. I believe there is a lot of misinformation in circulation. The HSE continues to move ahead with additional improvements for all medical card applicants and medical card renewals to improve the application process. The Department is also actively considering how those with Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia are looked after. It is a terrible pity that Deputy Troy did not remain in the Chamber. An expert group, including advocates of those affected by dementia and their families, health sector professionals and researchers has been convened to assist in developing a national dementia strategy. The objectives include the promotion of greater public awareness of the nature of dementia, its symptoms, causes and risk factors, latest information on how risk can be reduced and of what treatments, services and supports are available to those diagnosed with dementia and their families and carers. A second objective is to facilitate effective preparation and planning for their futures by those diagnosed with dementia. I believe everyone accepts the biggest problem is lack of diagnosis. A third objective is to recognise and facilitate the wish of many people with dementia to stay in their own homes and communities for as long as possible, using early intervention, integrated care pathways, case management and enhanced community services. A fourth is to simplify and streamline, to the greatest extent possible, the administrative processes applied to those seeking State services or supports or both for or on behalf of persons suffering from dementia. A final objective is to recognise and support the role of carers in accordance with the provisions of the national carers strategy, something that also was long-promised, including in the areas of advice, training and respite services.

The last point is very dear to my heart because carers are the unsung heroes of many homes and communities. They sacrifice huge parts of their own lives to bring comfort to those they love and they often succeed in doing this, as no one else can. For this reason I was delighted to be able to deliver a national carers strategy, which was published in July 2012. The national carers strategy is a cross-departmental strategy that sets the strategic direction for future policies, services and supports provided by Departments and Government agencies for carers. It sets out a vision with an ambitious set of national goals and objectives to guide policy development and service delivery. The Government's aim is to ensure that carers feel valued and supported in their caring role and are empowered to have a life of their own outside of their caring role. The strategy also contains a roadmap for implementation. It outlines the timelines and the Departments with responsibility for the implementation of the strategy's various elements. As implementation progresses, the strategy will be reviewed on a periodic basis to consider whether adjustments or additional actions are required.

A wide range of supports and benefits of course is provided by the Department of Social Protection. Budget 2014 has protected and maintained the State pension, carer's schemes, free travel, fuel allowance and free television licences. The tax treatment of the elderly remains unchanged, with no change in net income for pensioners as a result of this budget. Those aged 65 and over will continue to be treated more favourably under the Irish income tax code than all other taxpayers and this favourable treatment of pensioners has been protected in this budget. While it was decided to end the bereavement grant, the Government has maintained the current practice where, when someone in receipt of a certain social welfare payment passes away, his or her spouse, civil partner or cohabitant receives this payment for six weeks after the death. In addition, anyone having financial difficulty with funeral expenses can apply for supplementary welfare support from the Department of Social Protection. There is a range of additional supports available for people after a death that are worth considerably more than the bereavement grant. These include the widow's, widower's or surviving civil partner's pension, which is a weekly payment based on contributions or a means test, the widowed or surviving civil partner grant, which is a once-off payment of €6,000 where there is a dependent child and guardians' payments in cases in which someone is looking after an orphaned child. Moreover, if a person dies because of an accident at work or occupational disease, a special funeral grant of €850 is paid.

The original notion of an allowance covering handset rental, standing charges and a number of calls is now outdated. In recent years, the nature of the telephone market has been transformed with deregulation, mobile services and bundled services including television, broadband and telephone. Therefore, on examining the household benefits scheme, it was decided that retaining as far as possible the other elements of the package, such as the electricity and gas allowance and the television licence, would be more valuable to a recipient. The level of living alone allowance is being maintained at €7.70 per week. The senior alert scheme offers the more vulnerable members of the community a chance to live a more secure life, safe in the knowledge that help, if they need it, is never far away. The Government will examine the scheme to ascertain what additional resources are needed to provide peace of mind for elderly and vulnerable people. Those currently spending less than €17.21 each month on calls can join the Eircom vulnerable user scheme, which entitles a person to the first €8.05 worth of calls free. The announcement of an additional €200 million in new capital projects includes funding for 5,700 housing adaptation grants for older people and people with disabilities. Recent surveys on life for older people have demonstrated that Ireland ranks highly as a place in which to grow old, particularly in areas such as social connections, access to public transport and physical safety. While there is no doubt that these are challenging times - I outlined the reason these times are so challenging - I reiterate today that the Government will continue to prioritise older people and to support them to live their lives with dignity and independence.

I do not believe any Government, regardless of its colour or hue, likes to remove or cut a service to anyone. However, when this Government came into office, money for five months remained in the Exchequer and when one finds oneself in a position whereby one must ensure the country gets back on its feet, this is the type of money that would have paid for pensions and all those items.

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