Fiona O'Loughlin (Kildare South, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I am very happy to see all-party consensus on this very important issue. I am glad to be a Member of an Oireachtas where all Members of the House are giving this issue such priority.

Domiciliary care allowance is defined as a monthly payment made by the Department of Social Protection to the carer of a child with a disability so severe that the child requires care and attention substantially in excess of another child of the same age to allow the child to deal with the activities of daily living. Surely this definition says it all. We are speaking about children with severe disabilities where a member of the family cannot go out to work because there is a requirement for the child to receive extra care and attention.

It should be a given that all of our children are cherished equally and equitably, but that is not the case. Surely those who are most vulnerable and have been identified as such by virtue of being given this allowance should not have to engage in another battle for a medical card. At this point, 10,000 children are affected by that to which I refer.

It must be recognised that families with children who receive domiciliary care allowance are apprehensive about the future and the State support, something I am happy is being acknowledged today. Families have felt the effects of the economic downturn, with rising prices across household budgets, leading to increased fuel and food costs and rising transport and school costs, as well as the introduction of the household charge and USC, to name but a few. However, families who have children with disabilities are feeling the squeeze even more, with research showing that they are more likely to be living in poverty than other families. In addition, it has been estimated to cost three times as much to raise a child with a disability than to raise a child who has no health problems.

It is clear that any family entitled to domiciliary care allowance for a child should automatically be entitled to a medical card. It is now accepted that for all children early intervention in order to develop their potential is not only humane and compassionate, but has real economic benefits for society. This allowance is designed to enable those children with substantial disabilities for whom normal family care and mainstream services do not suffice to develop their potential and to experience, as closely as possible, the benefits of normal family life.

Children who should qualify for domiciliary care allowance, therefore, have disabilities or conditions that, given the services available to them at their age, location and family circumstances, require extraordinary parental input and additional expenditure if they are to develop as they should. Some children have a diagnosis or condition that will require costly and ongoing care into their adult years. They should receive this allowance without the unnecessary burden of having to undergo lengthy procedures to qualify for a medical card. Often, children have to have medical appointments and parents are advised to get additional medical reports. This should not be an extra burden, financially or otherwise. The long drawn-out process for approval of domiciliary care allowance has implications in assessing eligibility for carer's allowance and the respite care grant. The parents of these children often face additional costs. The assessment process needs to be flexible in order to capture all areas of need. It should not just include a child's diagnosis. Rather, it should also consider the level of care and support needs as well as additional financial and emotional costs. The household income of a family should not be reduced because a child has been diagnosed with a disability. Domiciliary care allowance should help families to offset the financial and emotional costs relating to a disability.

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