Almost half of us has a medical card

Nearly half of the population is in receipt of medical cards as unemployment shows no sign of falling and austerity continues to swell the ranks of the working poor.

This year alone, full medical and GP-only cards are expected to cost the taxpayer €2.5bn in medical fees and drugs costs.

There are now 2m medical and GP-visit cards in use — a figure which starkly reflects the country’s 14.6% unemployment rate and the effects of taking €28bn in tax increases and expenditure cuts out of the economy since 2008.

In the four years since the downturn began, there has been a 38% increase in the number of cards issued by the HSE.

According to HSE figures, an average medical card holder gets about €280 in free GP fees and over €800 in free drugs each year.

In contrast, figures released by the Health Insurance Authority in recent months show that the numbers holding private health insurance in this country had fallen to 2.123m, or 46.3% of the population. In 2005, 52% of the population had the back-up of health insurance.

Fine Gael senator Colm Burke said the proliferation of medical and GP-only cards was putting “a massive strain on the health budget”.

“Last year alone, the number of cards issued rose by a staggering 165,259, indicating the massive strain on resources being placed on the health budget.

“During times of economic hardship, it makes sense that more and more people become reliant on state support and this is clearly evident where our health service is concerned.”

Under current rules for people of working age, a person qualifies for a medical card if they earn less than €184 per week, or less than €266 in the case of a married couple. These limits can be increased with an allowance of up to €39 per week for each child.

The weekly cost of travelling to work — either 30c per mile or the cost of public transport tickets — can also be added on, as can “reasonable expenses” for rent or mortgage payments and childcare costs. How-ever, there is no defined limit on these expenses. Medical card holders are also allowed to have up to €36,000 in savings without affecting their claim.

With €721m needed to be cut from Department of Health spending this year, the medical and GP-only card scheme is now in line for cuts.

Up to 40,000 people are expected to lose their cards due to income eligibility changes. Up to half of this group are people over the age of 70, earning over €600 per week, who will be given a GP-visit card instead of a full card.

These planned changes to the primary care reimbursement service are estimated to save the taxpayer €60m.

However, Fianna Fáil spokesman on health Billy Kelleher has warned of a “secret clampdown” on “discretionary” medical cards, traditionally given to those diagnosed with cancer or other serious illnesses.

“There are huge numbers who are not getting cards but need them,” he said. “If the Government can’t afford to fund the current medical card scheme, how will it ever fund the promised free GP care for all?”