Autism care allowance claim rejected

Claims that there is an “unofficial policy” to remove the Domiciliary Care Allowance from children with autism have been rejected by the Department of Social Protection.

Its secretary general, Niamh O’Donoghue, came under pressure from TDs to explain why the payment is being removed from families caring for children on the autistic spectrum or with intellectual disabilities.

At the Public Accounts Committee, she was asked by Fine Gael TD for Wicklow, Simon Harris, if there was a “conspiracy” to impose stricter criteria because the department was “under pressure to make savings”.