Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy for raising the issue. I am taking the debate on behalf of my colleague, the Minister for Health, Deputy Varadkar, who apologises for the fact that he could not be here, although he makes an effort to try to hear all Topical Issue debates. The Government is conscious of the importance of the medical card system in ensuring that people whose needs do not enable them to access GPs and other health services are provided with such supports, in line with the legislative provisions. There is always room for improvement in how public services operate, and the Minister, Deputy Varadkar has made it clear to the HSE that it must continue to improve the level of service provided to applicants for medical cards. The Deputy raised a specific case, on which neither I nor the Minister could comment. Most of us in the House have heard similar stories.

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