Cabinet to discuss restoring lost medical cards

Plans to restore discretionary medical cards to some of the people who lost them will be presented to Cabinet next week, according to Taoiseach Enda Kenny, who said they were "withdrawn for administrative reasons".

Fine Gael TDs are seeking to have any legislation that may be needed to give back the cards to seriously ill or disabled children and adults passed through the Dáil before the summer recess.

Mr Kenny said there are a “number of options that need to be considered” on the best way of restoring the benefit to some 10,000 people since the start of this year. There is no clarity on whether any of the 12,000 people who lost such medical cards in 2013 will be included in the U-turn.