Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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I have now formally appointed all five members to the new Disabled Drivers Medical Board of Appeal (DDMBA) and appeal hearings recommenced in the first half of December 2023.

I appreciate that it has taken far longer than anticipated to get to this point. In this regard four Expression of Interest campaigns have had to be run over 18 months to source the legislatively required five members. Officials have also had to re-negotiate new hosting arrangements with the NRH following their withdrawal of services in February 2023.

It is not possible to break down the waiting list by county but the Secretary of the Board has informed me that, as of 21 February 2024, there are 834 appellants on the waiting list. 334 appellants have been assessed since the appeals process recommenced. The Board has prioritised the waiting list using clinically-based criteria. They are working to address the backlog as quickly as possible.