Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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Domiciliary Care Allowance (DCA) is a monthly allowance payable to a parent/guardian in respect of a child aged under 16 who has a severe disability that requires continual or continuous care and attention that is substantially over and above the level of care and attention normally required by a child of the same age and where the level of that disability is such that the child is likely to require this level of care and attention for at least 12 consecutive months.

Eligibility for DCA is not based entirely on the child's disability or diagnosis, but primarily on the impact of the disability/diagnosis, in terms of the associated care and attention required by the relevant child compared to a child of the same age without their disability.

The following are the number of DCA applications rejected by my Department (at the initial decision stage) in the years 2019, 2020, 2021 and 2022:

It should be noted that some of these applications would have been subsequently awarded on review, in cases where further medical evidence and/or relevant information was received, or following appeal to the Social Welfare Appeals Office.

Information on rejections or awards in relation to specific medical conditions is not collated. It should also be noted that some children may have multiple diagnoses.

I trust this clarifies the position for the Deputy.