Paul Kehoe (Wexford, Fine Gael)
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Question 108: To ask the Minister for Health and Children if her attention has been drawn to problems being experienced by persons trying to contact the Primary Care Reimbursement Service regarding the over 70 years medical card scheme and phone waiting times; the action being taken to deal with these problems; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [16009/09]

Paul Kehoe (Wexford, Fine Gael)
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Question 109: To ask the Minister for Health and Children if her attention has been drawn to the many elderly people who have had their over 70 years medical cards stopped even though they are fully entitled to them; her advice for those elderly people who are in urgent need of medication or a general practitioner visit but are unable to cover the cost; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [16010/09]

Mary Harney (Dublin Mid West, Progressive Democrats)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 108 and 109 together.

Following enactment of the Health Act 2008, the Health Service Executive (HSE) wrote to all medical card holders aged 70 years and over in January 2009. Persons who were in receipt of a medical card on a non means tested basis were requested, if over the income limits set out in the Act, to make a declaration to the Executive, on or before the 2nd March 2009.

To-date, 19,954 medical cards for persons aged 70 and over have been returned or removed from the medical card register. 10,690 of these cards were returned to the HSE by persons aged 70 or over whose weekly income was in excess of the specified thresholds and a further 9,264 medical cards were removed from the medical card register as part of a data quality exercise, where for example, the HSE had been advised that the card holder is deceased or the card holder was not known at the address, etc. The vast majority of people in the over 70's age group (343,499 - as at 1st March 2009) retained their medical cards.

Doctors have been advised by the HSE regarding clients that have been notified to the Primary Care Reimbursement Service (PCRS) as deceased, gone away or where duplicates exist. In circumstances where a card holder has been removed from the medical card register and they are still entitled to a medical card, the person or their GP should advise the HSE immediately and as soon as the details are confirmed, the client's medical card eligibility will be restored. The HSE has received contact from a number of doctors and individuals in this regard and these cases are being worked through.

The introduction of the new over 70s medical card scheme has resulted in a high number of telephone calls and enquiries to the PCRS. The Executive reports that while there can be delays experienced at certain times of the day, over 94% of callers speak to a customer service representative on the day that they call. The new central office has dealt with in excess of 80,000 telephone enquiries in the first quarter of 2009, and has processed in excess of 7,000 new medical card applications.

The Executive reports that Local Health Offices continue to deal with queries of a general nature about the medical card scheme and will provide any assistance needed with the application process, and along with the National Helpline (1850 24 1850), will deal with enquiries from clients in respect of their medical card entitlements and completion of application forms. The HSE has not instructed its Local Health Offices to refuse assistance in relation to medical card queries.