Written answers

Thursday, 23 June 2022

Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection

Social Welfare Eligibility

Photo of Martin BrowneMartin Browne (Tipperary, Sinn Fein)
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367. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection if parents on low incomes who borrowed significant amounts of money to get their children privately diagnosed or assessed due to the lengthy assessment of needs waiting lists are eligible for the additional needs payment; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [33373/22]

Photo of Heather HumphreysHeather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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Under the supplementary welfare allowance  scheme, my Department can make additional needs payments to help meet expenses that a person cannot pay from their weekly income.  Payments are made at the discretion of the officers administering the scheme, taking into account the requirements of the legislation, and all the relevant circumstances of the case in order to ensure that the payments target those most in need of assistance. Additional needs payments include exceptional and urgent needs payments and supplements to assist with ongoing or recurring costs that cannot be met from the client’s own resources and are deemed to be necessary. 

In general, additional needs payments are not intended to cover circumstances where responsibility rests with another Government Department or Agency.  In the case of medical assessments, this responsibility rests with the Health Service Executive.   However, an additional needs payment can be made to help meet essential expenditure which a person could not reasonably be expected to meet out of their weekly income. This assessment will consider all outgoings including loan repayments.

Any person who considers they may have an entitlement to an additional needs payment is encouraged to contact their local community welfare service.  There is a National Community Welfare Contact Centre in place - 0818-607080 - which will direct callers to the appropriate office.     

I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.  

Photo of Pádraig Mac LochlainnPádraig Mac Lochlainn (Donegal, Sinn Fein)
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368. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the number of persons who were refused the domiciliary carers allowance annually in each county since 2017, in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [33420/22]

Photo of Heather HumphreysHeather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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Domiciliary Care Allowance (DCA) is a monthly payment for a child , aged under 16 with a severe disability, who requires continual or continuous care and attention substantially over and above the care and attention usually required by a child of the same age. The child must be likely to require this level of care for at least 12 months.

The following table shows the number of applicants who were refused DCA annually since 2017. The Department does not collate the requested data broken down by county. 

Year  DCA Claims disallowed during year
2017 2,187
2018 2,225
2019 2,875
2020 2,639
2021 2,468
2022 to date 1,835

It is important to note that any decision of a Deciding Officer can be revised if new or additional information if provided. This can result in several reviews being carried out on a single application and several disallowances being counted against a decision which is then ultimately allowed.

I would encourage all people who apply for Domiciliary Care Allowance, or other Social Welfare payments, to provide as much information as possible with their application so that their claim can be decided at the earliest date possible.

I hope this clarifies the position for the Deputy. 

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