Government faces quiz over ‘discrepancies’ in medical card claims

The Government is being urged to explain if the Dáil was misled during a debate last autumn on discretionary medical cards when ministers insisted just 1,000 people had lost the benefit since 2011.

The Coalition’s previous statements are at odds with the announcement last week that some 12,000 who had lost discretionary cards through a review process since July 2011 would have them restored.

The Department of Health said the figures were based on a “preliminary analysis” only and prepared at short notice, but the opposition claims the discrepancies highlight a lack of transparency on the issue.