The devastated mother of a toddler with Down syndrome whose application for a medical card has been refused for a fourth time said she believes the HSE has washed its hands of her son because he will cost them too much in the long term.

Health Minister Leo Varadkar has suggested a newly-formed independent HSE group tasked with further detailing medical card reforms will make more discretionary support available to the people who need it most.

The family of a toddler denied a medical card three times despite having Down syndrome, a hole in the heart and a collapsed lung, is still living in limbo — three months after Taoiseach Enda Kenny said the issue would be resolved "to your satisfaction".

A campaign group fighting for medical card reforms is to hand a 65,000-strong petition into the Oireachtas health committee today in a bid to speed up promised changes to the system.