Union's warning on medical cards 'extradordinary'

A warning from a trade union over difficulties with the roll-out of 200,000 doctor-only medical cards was today branded extraordinary by health service employers.

After a recent agreement with the Irish Medical Organisation (IMO) paved the way for the introduction of the scheme, Gerard Barry from the Health Service Executive Employers Agency, said it beggared belief that the trade union IMPACT had now come forward with problems over clerical staff.

“It is quite extraordinary, we have given the guarantees, we stand over those guarantees. It really beggars belief that we find ourselves in this situation this morning,” Mr Barry, the chief executive of the agency, said.

Mr Barry said since last June the agency had given IMPACT assurances that any necessary extra clerical or administrative support would be provided.

“We agreed with IMPACT that the issues would be dealt with at local level with IMPACT representatives and management representatives,” Mr Barry said.

“And we also agreed that if these discussions got into any difficulties IMPACT would come back to us here in the agency and highlight their concerns.”

Mr Barry said it was extraordinary that he was alerted to difficulties with IMPACT over clerical saff for the first time yesterday.

Kevin Callinan, general secretary of the health division of the trade union IMPACT, said the roll-out could not proceed in many parts of the country as agreements had not been reached with its members on the extra administrative workload involved.

“I find it remarkable because the HSE employers agency have devoted an enormous amount of time to settling the discussions with the IMO,” he said.

“We had discussions with them during the summer, we agreed a process that there would be regional discussions.”

Mr Callinan said union representatives had difficulty in around a half of all cases in getting discussions with employers.

The union boss said he received a letter on Tuesday from the agency seeking confirmation that there would be cooperation with the roll-out.

“We have said since April, please sit down with us, we’ll work out the practical arrangements because it is absolutely clear there are going to be additional staff required to assess and administer the scheme,” he told RTE Radio.

However, Mr Callinan said further discussions would be held today towards reaching agreement with the employers agency in areas around the country.

The Health Department has said there was no shortage of administrative staff in the health services.

John Monaghan, vice-president of the St Vincent de Paul, said the fact it had taken 11-months to roll-out the doctor-only medical card system due to discussions with unions was disappointing.

“At this stage to find there is still lurking in the undergrowth the possibility of a dispute, which would allay yet again the introduction of these cards is just terrible. Poorer people are waiting,” Mr Monaghan said.