Government must deliver ‘firm proposal’ on terminal medical cards – patient advocate

John Wall at home in Quin, Co Clare. 'Let’s get something done. All I’m hearing about is talks about talks'. File Picture: Eamon Ward

The time for talking is over and the Government must deliver a “firm proposal” to honour its commitment to provide medical cards to people with a terminal diagnosis by February 10.

That’s according to patient advocate John Wall, who himself has a terminal diagnosis, and expressed his deep frustration at the protracted process adopted by the minister and Department of Health on the medical card issue.

The Clare-based patient advocate has been pushing for the current terminal illness exemption for medical cards to be extended from 12 months to 24 months to ease the burden on patients.

The change would eliminate the need for patients to be means tested and have their medical card reviewed every six months.

Mr Wall said he did not endorse the approach taken by Health Minister Stephen Donnelly when he set up a group last November to consider what legislative options were available. The minister gave the group 12 weeks to look at the options, a deadline Mr Wall said expires on February 10.

It was a matter of policy rather than legislation, Mr Wall said, adding that he was awaiting an update on the issue from the minister or his department.

The time for talking was over, Mr Wall said, pointing out that people were dying while further discussions took place.

“People are dying. People don’t defer dying while the Government makes a decision. This is something that is very real, here and now,” Mr Wall said.

“Let’s get something done. All I’m hearing about is talks about talks. While that was welcome at the beginning of this campaign, two years later, we’re still talking and no further down the road and how many people have died in the interim without access to a medical card. To me that’s the horror of all this.

“Telling a terminal patient that they are going to spend more time talking about something is an insult. Time is something that a lot of terminal patients don’t have,” he added.