Thomas Pringle (Donegal South West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

As this matter has been ongoing for a number of months, it seems strange that, even at this stage, we cannot obtain information from the HSE on how many people are affected. I have correspondence from the Minister going back to May in which he stated the process had started, yet we still do not have figures for how many are affected.

There is also confusion about the timeframe for reimbursement. The Minister of State has mentioned that it will cover the period July to December 2013 but earlier in his statement he said it was HSE policy that people should obtain items using their medical card all of the time. Since prescription charges were introduced for medical card patients, those on the long-term illness scheme who were entitled to free care have also had to pay prescription charges, according to the Minister of State's response. The reimbursement period should pre-date July 2013 because people on the long-term illness scheme have been paying charges for a long time. The HSE should tell us how many are affected. It should also ensure they are reimbursed straightaway.

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