Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

We cannot have a body of people, hurt and excluded, who have been doubly hurt by being further excluded, as in the cases to which I referred.

I indicated to the Minister of State before any and all of that presented that I would support the introduction of free GP cards for children up to the age of six years as an integral part of a programmed, timeframed introduction of universal entitlement to free GP care, itself a pillar of what I believed we all wanted to see, namely universal entitlement to health care across the board on the basis of need alone. I am still anxious to get to that point. I still need assurances from the Minister of State that such a timeframe is in his mind and those of his colleagues at the Cabinet table. It is very important that we do not park what this Bill now provides for and allow an inordinate period of time to pass during which we are looking after one body of children up to a particular age, with a very different picture presenting for everyone else. That simply would not be acceptable and I want to make that absolutely clear to the Minister of State. My support throughout has been based on the understanding that this was to be a first step; a replacement first step for earlier first steps which were set aside. I trust that we will hear from the Minister of State very soon how he intends to proceed to continue to roll out access to free GP care for others in the population, culminating ultimately in such access for everyone. That is where I want to arrive at.

In the context of the backdrop of the discretionary medical cards and all that we have had to contest across the floor of this House in recent months, I ask the Minister of State to take on board those particular sores that continue to fester. The fact that there are people who are to be excluded again is wrong. Recompense must be provided. I appeal to the Minister of State-----

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