Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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395. To ask the Minister for Health if in the income assessment for medical cards for over and under 70 years of age the actual interest earned on savings can be assessed as an option rather than the nominal interest based on a rate per €1,000 euro over the exempted thresholds; if not, when the regulations governing the means test were changed; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [50268/17]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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In the case of the assessment process for medical cards, both for under 70 and over 70 cards, investment amounts up to €36,000 for a single person and €72,000 for couples are disregarded for assessment purposes.

For savings and investment 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 0.68% with effect from 7 November 2017.

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