John Kelly (Labour)

I am delighted Senator Terry Leyden is supporting me 100%.

For the past few weeks many Senators have been expressing anger at the way applications for medical cards are being processed by the PCRS in Finglas. However, nothing has improved or changed in that regard. There is another elephant in the room that has not been mentioned by many since I was elected to the Seanad, although I am aware it is a big issue for many Senators, that is, the way the medical profession is deciding on claims to the Department of Social Protection for disability allowance, invalidity allowance and carer's allowance. It is evident that there is a "refuse" mentality, that somewhere along the line somebody has told the medical decision makers to refuse everything and push all claimants towards the appeals process. I am aware of cases in my own area. For instance, the husband of a lady with Parkinson's disease gave up work for two years and claimed carer's benefit in order to look after his wife. At the end of the two year period he applied for carer's allowance but was told his wife did not need to be cared for. The disease is getting progressively worse. I am also aware of a man who suffers from severe depression, is totally incontinent and has limited use of his left leg - a figure of 5% has been mentioned - yet he has been told he does not need a carer.