Mick Wallace (Wexford, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I will be brave and try to follow the contribution of Deputy Clare Daly. However, my contribution will be nowhere near as good, for which I apologise in advance.

It is welcome that Deputy Finian McGrath has made this a matter of public debate once again. Matters of this nature tend to slip out of notice or drag on and, as a result, children lose out. In addition, ground that it is not possible to make up is lost, which is very unfair. Many parents see bureaucracy getting in the way of fairness for their children and find it difficult to comprehend that this is the case. A constituent of mine, Dr. Tadhg Gleeson, wrote to me about this matter over a year ago and again in recent days. He has indicated that he finds it difficult to understand why, given the low number of children involved, there is such obstinacy in achieving fairness in this matter. He has further informed me that Down's syndrome is both complex and low incidence. He states that it is complex in that it affects every cell in the body, causing multiple disabilities which can influence the ability to learn and low incidence in that it affects only one in 546 children. He adds that for the purposes of comparison, it should be noted that autism spectrum disorders affect approximately one in 100 children and that such disorders are listed as low incidence.

Parents who have applied for resource hours to be allocated to children with Down's syndrome have been asked whether there is anything else wrong with them. It must be difficult to have to deal with questions of that nature. Surely that these children have Down's syndrome is enough to be going on with for their parents.

There is both discrimination and inequality in this matter. The level of inequality has increased dramatically in recent years. What is happening is adding to it; it is discrimination and amounts to inequality for some. My constituent, Dr. Gleeson, says there is a need to deal with the issue as a matter of urgency. If, as Deputy Clare Daly pointed out, we are going to be obliged to wait for the legislation to be enacted, the children involved will lose out to an even greater degree. Perhaps it is time to state they have lost enough already. It will be outrageous if they are not in a position to have resource hours allocated to them next September. The Government must include Down's syndrome on the relevant list to ensure these resource hours will be allocated. It is to be hoped that, in the aftermath of this debate, the children involved and their parents will not be obliged to wait long.

I refer briefly to the issue of medical cards. While I appreciate that this matter does not come within the remit of the Minister, he is in a strong position to raise it with the Minister for Health. According to Down Syndrome Ireland, approximately 1,000 children with the syndrome are at risk of losing their discretionary medical cards. That is outrageous. Yesterday thejournal.ie featured an interview with the mother of a young boy who has Down's syndrome and lost his medical card. She stated her son had 13 associated conditions, including a cardiac problem and acute asthma. It costs her approximately €2,500 a month to cover his various medical needs. She stated that while the medical card would not eliminate all of this, it would help a great deal. We can discuss new models and structures until the cows come home, but we must take action now in order to address the inequality and unfairness attached to this issue.

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