Róisín Shortall (Dublin North West, Independent)
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204. To ask the Minister for Health the current actual interest rate applied to applicants for the medical card who are over 70 [17172/14]

Alex White (Dublin South, Labour)
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In the case of the special assessment process for persons aged 70 years and over, savings or investment amounts up to €36,000 for a single person and €72,000 for couples are disregarded for assessment purposes.

For savings or investments amounts over these limits, a notional rate of interest will be applied to determine the amount to be taken into account as income for assessment purposes. The notional rate is currently 2.3%. with effect from 1^stJanuary 2014.

Alternatively, a medical card applicant may opt to have the actual income in interest received from the financial institution applied for the purpose of means assessment. The applicant must provide a certificate of interest paid in the last full calendar year.

In respect of fixed term or long term savings products where interest is applied after a fixed number of years, and if the applicant so wishes, the HSE can take account of the interest earned in the year of maturity of the investment or can apply the notional rate to determine the income.