Defence Forces healthcare scheme in doubt without Government intervention

PDForra set the Medical Assistance Scheme (PMAS) up with €150,000 of its own funds and members pay just €1 a week for cover.

A highly successful cross-border healthcare system for enlisted Defence Force personnel is in jeopardy unless the government legislates for its continuation beyond December 31.

PDForra started its Medical Assistance Scheme (PMAS) in July 2018 to provide private healthcare for members who were being forced out of the Defence Forces due to medical issues, or were injured on duty and couldn't get fast treatment within the public health system.

There are more than 3,000 members of the Army, Naval Service and Air Corps in the scheme. To date 274 have received treatment, primarily at the Kingsbridge private hospital in Belfast. In total, 150 needed surgical intervention.

Damien Quigley, a director of PMAS, said that when the scheme was founded it operated through the EU Cross-Border Health Directive, but after Brexit this wasn't available. However, from January 1 this year a temporary cross-border healthcare arrangement, the Northern Ireland Healthcare Plan scheme, was set up by the government. It runs until December 31.

“If the government doesn't legislate for the continuation of the scheme we are in massive trouble. We have made contact with other healthcare providers in Europe, but logistically it would be far more challenging to send people to the continent and it would be far more costly in terms of transport, accommodation, etc,” Mr Quigley said.

He said PMAS has helped remove Defence Forces members from public hospital waiting lists and also ensured that injured or sick personnel, many of whom would be highly experienced, were not discharged from the country's military.

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“The rationale for setting it up was to stop more people from losing their jobs. There is strict medical criteria for being a member of the Defence Forces and if people are injured or have some medical problems they have lost their jobs in the past,” Mr Quigley said.

PDForra set it up with €150,000 of its own funds and members pay just €1 a week for cover. Setting up PMAS was assisted by Catherine Donohoe, the 'national contact point' for the cross-border scheme.

"She was very helpful to us," Mr Quigley said.

The association was also able to “bargain with private hospitals” to keep the healthcare charges down.

A lot of the treatments in Belfast have involved surgical interventions for knee, hip and back injuries. However, Defence Forces personnel diagnosed with cancer have also been referred there.

The PDFORRA Medical Assistance Scheme (PMAS) is continuing to grow with membership levels in excess of 2000.

It is hoped that when membership reaches 3000, the scheme will be rolled out to family members and should the scheme support this development consideration to ex-members. pic.twitter.com/NRHBleVvLY

— pdforra (@pdforra) August 22, 2019

Mr Quigley outlined one heartwarming story of a young woman in the Defence Forces who was diagnosed with an ovarian cyst.

She was told last March her treatment was being postponed here because of Covid-19. Within two weeks PDForra got her successful treatment in Belfast and she is now pregnant.

“We also want the Department of Defence to support the scheme financially. We hope to start including families of Defence Forces members in the scheme, but we can't do that without the support of the Department of Defence,” Mr Quigley said.

He said the government needs to act now on the issue to provide some certainty going forward for members of PMAS.

"There's a massive worry among members about the continuation of this scheme and we are looking for the government to legislate for an extension of it," Mr Quigley added.