Tom Neville (Limerick County, Fine Gael)
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601. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the status an application by a person (details supplied) for a household benefits package; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [41896/19]

Regina Doherty (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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The person concerned was awarded the Household Benefit Package in May 2013.  Following a review of the person’s continuing entitlement to Household Benefit in 2018, it was found that the person concerned resides with their brother who was in receipt of Illness Benefit.  Under existing scheme conditions, Illness benefit is a non-qualifying payment within the household.

In order to establish if there were sufficient medical grounds to award the payment, a Medical Cert was reviewed by the Department's Medical Advisor who found that the household was no longer eligible for receipt of the Household Benefits package.  The person concerned was disallowed and their Household Benefits payments were stopped with effect from 16 February 2018.

The person concerned reapplied for Household Benefits on 3 October 2019.  The medical grounds will be re-assessed by a Department Medical Advisor when a completed medical cert is returned.  

Notwithstanding the outcome of this review, I am pleased to notify the Deputy that on implementation of an incoming Budget 2020 measure regarding household composition, a recipient of illness benefit living in a household will no longer disqualify a person from the  Household Benefit package, effective from January next year.  It is open to any previously disallowed person to reapply from January 2020 and their application will be assessed under the new scheme conditions.  

I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.