Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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504. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the number of applications for various health-related payments that have been refused in the past three years on the basis of failure to qualify on health grounds; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [25002/23]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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My Department is committed to providing a quality service to all its customers, ensuring that applications are processed and that decisions on entitlement are made as quickly as possible. In general, social welfare schemes which involve medical or caring conditionality take the longest time to process.

These cases have a number of complex qualifying conditions. There are a number of elements that a deciding officer must consider. As an example, before a decision can be made on entitlement to Carer’s Allowance and Carers Benefit, evidence must be provided in respect of the care recipient’s care requirements, the level of care the carer provides and the carer's means. In considering applications for disability allowance, evidence must be provided in respect of the person’s medical condition, the extent to which it restricts them from taking up employment, their means and their habitual residency. While considering applications for Invalidity Pension, a deciding officer must look at contributions paid and whether the person concerned is permanently incapable for work.

An application for any of these schemes may be disallowed on one or more of the eligibility conditions. My Department does not maintain statistics on each of the individual reasons.

The number of applications for various health-related schemes, registered, awarded and disallowed from 2020 to 2022 are set out in the table below

*It should be noted that the number of applications awarded, for each scheme, will include claims that have initially been disallowed and subsequently awarded on review or appeal.

I hope this clarifies the position for the Deputy.

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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505. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the number of payments to men and women throughout the country on reaching their 100th birthday in each of the past five years to date; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [25003/23]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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My Department does not make any payments to men and women throughout the country on reaching their 100th birthday. The only function that my Department has is to ascertain on request from the President's office, if these customers are alive. Therefore there are no such records held by my Department.