Deirdre Clune (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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Question 371: To ask the Minister for Social Protection the current waiting time for the assessment of an appeal against a decision to refuse illness benefit; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37090/10]

Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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I am informed by the Social Welfare Appeals Office that the average time to process an Illness Benefit appeal at present is 37 weeks. There was a 46% increase in the number of appeals received by that Office in 2009 when compared to 2008, which in itself was 27% greater than the numbers received in 2007. There was an increase of a further 44% in the number of appeals received in the first eight months of 2010. These increases have caused delays in the processing of appeals.

While this growth is clearly impacting on processing times, it must also be remembered that they cover all phases of the appeal process including the submission by the Department of its comments on the grounds for the appeal and, in the case of Illness Benefit, a second examination must be carried out by the Department's Medical Assessors.

On the return of the papers and comments to the Social Welfare Appeals Office the case is referred to an Appeals Officer who will either make a summary decision based on the documentary evidence or, if s/he considers it necessary, will list the case for oral hearing.

Given the logistics involved in organising an oral hearing, a considerable period of time is added to the process. During 2009, 81% of all Illness Benefit cases were dealt with by way of oral hearing but, due to some of the initiatives outlined below, this has been reduced to 45% in 2010 to date. In order to be fair to all appellants, the vetting of appeals and the arranging of oral hearings are being dealt with in chronological order.

A number of initiatives have been put in place to enhance the capacity of the office to deal with the current caseload and inflows. In that regard: · 2 additional Appeals Officers were assigned to the Office in 2009, · A number of additional staff were assigned to the administration area of the Office, · The organisation of the Appeals Officer's work has been changed so as to increase productivity, · A project to improve the business processes in the office was undertaken which has resulted in a number of improvements being implemented, and · Significant enhancements have been made to the office's IT and phone systems.

In addition, it was decided to use experienced retired staff strictly on a short term basis to supplement the current resources and the services of eight retired officers have now been secured on a part-time basis and have been operating since July.

I am assured by the Chief Appeals Officer that she is keeping current processes under continuous review with a view to achieving a more effective throughput of appeals, while ensuring that any progress does not conflict with due process in terms of the rights of appellants and adherence to the requirements of natural justice.

Terence Flanagan (Dublin North East, Fine Gael)
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Question 372: To ask the Minister for Social Protection if he will support the case of a person (details supplied) in Dublin 9; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [37092/10]

Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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In the case in question an application for domiciliary care allowance was received on the 12th August 2009. This application was referred to one of the Department's Medical Assessors who found that the child was not medically eligible for the allowance. A letter issued on the 6th October 2009 where the person concerned was advised of the decision to refuse the allowance. The person concerned subsequently lodged an appeal against this decision. She was informed by the Social Welfare Appeals Office on 24th May 2010 that the appeal had been disallowed.

The decision/appeal process for this application is now complete. All the available information was provided to the appeals officer before the appeal was considered. However, if the person concerned has new or additional information, it is open to her to re-apply.