Medical cards restored after year of denials

More than 15,000 people will have discretionary medical cards restored following a humiliating climbdown by the Government which admitted it could "not stand over" withdrawals which it denied had been taking place for more than a year.

Wed, 18 Jun, 2014 - 01:00

Mary Regan, Political Editor

Patients with lifelong illnesses and children with severe disabilities who have suffered hardship as a result of losing their cards, will be contacted over the next four weeks about the reinstatement of the vital assistance.

However, families will not be compensated for the financial loss incurred as a result of paying for GP visits, medications, appliances, and therapies.

Announcing the decision, Health Minister James Reilly apologised to families who suffered as a result of an “unintended consequence” of the centralisation of the medical card processing system. “Their situation in life is hard enough to bear without having further uncertainty around their medical cards,” he said.

Enda Kenny said the decision to process all cards in one office “resulted in many families being severely inconvenienced… I am very sorry that many of the cases that were brought to light on foot of the examination of discretion caused a great deal of stress for people”.

.@MichealMartinTD asks Taoiseach to apologise to 30,000 families affected by cuts to discretionary medical cards considering distress caused
— Fianna Fáil (@fiannafailparty) June 17, 2014

While the move was welcomed by organisations, they warned 7,000 people who lost their cards because they were too unwell or not capable of filling out the review forms will still be left without their cards.

HSE chief executive Tony O’Brien said there are 35,000 fewer discretionary medical cards in circulation compared to July 2011 when centralisation began.

Some 15,000 meet the criteria to get them back, and 7,000 did not comply with the review process. The remaining 13,000 is unexplained.

He said the HSE expect a number of cases to come forward where people were unable to complete the review, and promised they will be treated with mercy.

However, campaign group Our Children’s Health said the “onus should be on the HSE to identify such cases and make first contact”.

It also said “nothing has changed” for many families, including those who have never had a medical card but are waiting for a decision or appeal of a refusal.

“There will be no temporary provision for those that are currently in the middle of their first application or those that will be diagnosed with a serious illness over the coming months,” it said.

“These parents are trapped under the terms of the existing system and it seems will remain so — they are at breaking point.”

Dr Reilly accepted the current law, dating back to the 1970s, “will continue to apply” in these cases.

The HSE will bring forward plans later this year to provide cards based on medical conditions. The cards being returned in the coming weeks will only be on a temporary basis until these new laws come into effect.

The Carers’ Association said many families have paid medical bills of up to €1,200 a month while they were without cards and should be reimbursed.

However, Dr Reilly said: “We are absolutely clear that these decisions were made legally under the law and properly and therefore there is no question of a refund being made.”

Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin said the Government has put families “through hell and back” and had been in “total denial” about the problem.

Sinn Féin leader Gerry Adams said “this embarrassing U-turn is further evidence that his minister and Government is making up policy as it goes along”.