asked the Minister for Health if he plans to set a standard of payment for the blind welfare allowance throughout the health board regions, to be determined by the extent of disability rather than the present emphasis on the person's means, as suggested in a report (details supplied).
Written Answers. - Blind Welfare Allowance.
82.
The concept of the scheme of blind welfare allowances is to afford a supplementary income support (in addition to blind pension, etc.) to necessitous and unemployable blind persons living in the community (i.e. not maintained in an institution) in deference to the special nature of their handicap. Following discussions with representatives of the blind, revised guidelines designed to standardise the administration of the scheme were issued to health boards in 1979.
As I indicated in reply to another question from the Deputy this week, the implications of the suggestion made in the report in question that the present scheme be replaced by one related to degree of disability are being assessed in my Department together with all the other recommendations in the report.