Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick, Fine Gael)
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Question 268: To ask the Minister for Health, in view of the fact that community welfare officers have been transferred from his Department to the Department of Social Protection, the persons with responsibility of providing financial assistance to patients who have to travel regularly to hospital for treatment; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8680/12]

James Reilly (Dublin North, Fine Gael)
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In general, patients are expected to make their own way to and from hospital and OPD appointments, using private or scheduled public transport. The exceptions are for dialysis, cancer (radiotherapy and chemotherapy) and post-operative transplant patients. In these cases, the patient's appointment or treatment should be directly related to the condition. Transport may also be provided where, in the clinician's view, the patient would be unable to make the journey without clinical assistance or where the patient must be transported on a stretcher.

Under the supplementary welfare allowance (SWA) scheme, the Department of Social Protection may make a single payment to help meet essential, once-off, exceptional expenditure, which a person could not reasonably be expected to meet out of their weekly income. These payments are known as Exceptional Needs Payments (ENPs). The amount paid, if any, is assessed by Departmental staff (former Community Welfare Officers) on a case by case basis, depending on the nature of each particular exceptional need and the type of assistance required. There is no automatic entitlement to such payments i.e. the fact that a person is dependent on a social welfare or HSE payment does not necessarily mean that they will qualify for an ENP. The scheme is not intended to cover circumstances where primary responsibility rests with another Government Department or Agency.