asked the Minister for Health if he is aware that the operation of Section 14 of the Health Act, 1953 has revealed that many insured persons, who are heads of families and who are not entitled to medical cards when employed, but are entitled to such cards when ill, have to pay for medical treatment at home or for prescriptions pending the examination of a claim for a medical card; and if, in order to improve the administration of the service, he will make arrangements with the Minister for Social Welfare to extend the medical certification system under the Social Welfare Acts so as to enable insured workers to obtain prescriptions from the panel doctor as part of the social welfare service.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Medical Certification System.
2.
I am not aware that insured persons who, while working, are not entitled to medical cards have necessarily to pay for medical treatment and medicines when they have to cease working owing to illness, pending examination of their applications for cards.
Under Article 16 of the General Medical Services Regulations, 1954, a person who considers that he is entitled to avail himself of the general practitioner service and the supply of medicines under Section 14 of the Health Act, 1953, and who does not hold a medical card, can apply at once to an "authorised person" for a direction requiring the appropriate district medical officer to afford to that person, or to a dependant of that person, a general practitioner service either, as may be necessary, in the patient's home or at the appropriate dispensary. An "authorised person" is a member of a health authority or a person appointed for the purpose by the health authority.
One of the reasons why this procedure was written into the Regulations was to meet the urgent type of case referred to by the Deputy and, in general, I think it does so. I shall, however, consider the suggestion made in the latter part of the question.
Is the Minister aware that quite a number of health authorities have completely done away with the red ticket system and that the tickets to which the Minister refers are not available in many counties at the present time?
My information is that the rights of the sick person are not fully realised by the person affected. I know that in certain areas at any rate, it is quite a normal procedure to appoint authorised persons and resort to them.
While what the Minister says is true that some health authorities do continue to operate the ticket system, quite a number of them have ceased to operate it. Would the Minister notify the health authorities that they should continue in order to carry out what the Minister has said?
If the Deputy will be good enough to give me the particulars of any health authority he knows who are ignoring this, I shall be glad.
Could the Minister indicate how many forms, as a maximum, the warden or local county councillor is entitled to issue to a single person? Is he entitled to issue more than one form, which is valid for a month, if during that month, the application of the person for a medical card has not been cleared up by the county council?
Apparently, the Deputy is indicating a very complex procedure. If he puts down a question, I shall be glad to answer it at length.