Pádraig Rice (Cork South-Central, Social Democrats)
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855. To ask the Minister for Health if GP visits for patients on chemotherapy treatment needing regular blood tests, who would otherwise have to travel long distances to their treating hospital, are covered for patients under the medical card scheme; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [65485/25]

Jennifer Carroll MacNeill (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael)
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GPs are private practitioners, most of whom hold a GMS contract for the provision of GP services without charge to medical card and GP visit card holders. As of the beginning of this month, 2,587 GPs hold a GMS contract, while a further 634 GPs do not hold a GMS contract but hold one or more other HSE contracts for the provision of health services.

Under the terms of the current GMS contract, GPs are required to provide eligible patients with ''all proper and necessary treatment of a kind usually undertaken by a general practitioner and not requiring special skill or experience of a degree or kind which general practitioners cannot reasonably be expected to possess". Persons who hold a medical card or a GP visit card are not subject to any co-payments or other charges in respect of such services including GP consultations.

Medical card and GP visit card eligibility is provided primarily on a means tested basis in accordance with the Health Act 1970. The HSE assesses each card application on a qualifying financial threshold. This is the amount of money that an individual can earn a week and still qualify for a relevant card. It is specific to the individual’s own financial circumstances and takes into consideration certain expenses. Where a person does not qualify for a medical card, they may still be eligible for a GP visit card.

The HSE may also exercise discretion and grant a medical card or GP visit card where the applicant exceeds the qualifying threshold but incurs significant medical expenses. Furthermore, an emergency medical card may be provided where the person has a terminal illness, is receiving end-of-life treatment, or needs a medical card for urgent ongoing care.

All children under 8 years of age and persons aged 70 years and over are eligible for a GP visit card on the basis of their age. In addition, certain other cohorts of persons are automatically eligible for either a medical card or GP visit card, this includes automatic medical card eligibility for children under 18 years old who have been diagnosed with cancer within the last 5 years. Detailed information on medical card and GP visit card eligibility is available from the HSE website.