Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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Question 185: To ask the Minister for Social Protection if medical assessors, doctors, nurses and so on, who carry out medical assessments in respect of applications for social welfare payments are being replaced when they leave work and are these posts subject to the recruitment moratorium; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [8565/11]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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2057Government policy dictates that a moratorium applies on the filling of any posts, with exceptions in very limited circumstances only. In view of the importance of the medical assessor post for the control function of the Department, the Department of Finance has approved the filling of medical assessor vacancies as an exception to the general moratorium principle. Arrangements are in place to provide for the presence of nurse attendants at medical in-person assessments – the majority of nurse attendants are engaged on a fee per session basis and as such are not employees of the Department.