Written answers

Wednesday, 24 June 2009

Department of Health and Children

Medical Cards

9:00 pm

Photo of Jan O'SullivanJan O'Sullivan (Limerick East, Labour)
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Question 107: To ask the Minister for Health and Children if she will review the position whereby people who suffer from Crohn's disease cannot get a medical card or qualify for the long term illness scheme in view of the fact that this condition is lifelong; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [25290/09]

Photo of Mary HarneyMary Harney (Dublin Mid West, Progressive Democrats)
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At present, medical cards are granted primarily on the basis of means and individual circumstances. Under the Health Act, 2004, determination of eligibility for medical cards is the responsibility of the Health Service Executive. The HSE has discretion, in cases of exceptional need, to provide assistance to individuals where undue hardship would otherwise be caused.

Medical cards are made available to persons and their dependants who would otherwise experience undue hardship in meeting the cost of general practitioner services. In 2005, the GP visit card was introduced as a graduated benefit so that people on lower incomes who do not qualify for a medical card would not be deterred on cost grounds from visiting their GP. In June 2006, I agreed with the HSE to raise the assessment guidelines for GP visit cards and these are now 50% higher than those in respect of medical cards. For medical card and GP visit card applications, the HSE now considers an applicant's income after tax and PRSI are deducted, rather than total income. Allowances are also made for expenses on childcare, rent and mortgage costs and the cost of travel to work.

I have no plans to provide for the granting of medical cards to any particular group as a whole. However, my Department is currently reviewing the eligibility criteria for medical cards with a view to making the system as fair and transparent as possible, taking into account financial and medical need.

In relation to the Long Term Illness (LTI) Scheme there are also currently no plans to extend the list of eligible conditions covered by the scheme, which was introduced on a statutory basis in 1971. Under the Drugs Payment Scheme, which was introduced in 1999, no individual or family unit pays more than €100 per calendar month towards the cost of approved prescribed medicines. The scheme is easy to use and significantly reduces the cost burden for families and individuals incurring ongoing expenditure on medicines.

The conditions that qualify under the LTI scheme are: mental handicap, mental illness (for people under 16 only), phenylketonuria, cystic fibrosis, spina bifida, hydrocephalus, diabetes mellitus, diabetes insipidus, haemophilia, cerebral palsy, epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, muscular dystrophies, parkinsonism, conditions arising from thalidomide and acute leukaemia. The LTI does not cover GP fees or hospital co-payments.

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