Vol. 509 No. 6
349 Mr. P. Carey asked the Minister for Health and Children if his attention has been drawn to the practice by some general practitioners of charging medical card holders for medication which previously was issued free of charge; if so, the medicines involved; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21391/99]
In general, medical card holders receive their medicines from community pharmacies under the general medical services scheme, GMS. The exception would be medical card holders living in rural areas without a community pharmacy who receive their medicines directly from their general practitioner, known as a dispensing doctor. There have been no changes to the list of medicines available under the general medical services scheme, other than the usual updating on a monthly basis. Medicines available under the GMS scheme are available to medical card holders free of charge. If the Deputy is aware of any situation where a medical card patient has been charged for a GMS medicine, I would be happy to look into the matter.
I should also explain that the new drug payment scheme is in place to assist people who are not eligible for a medical card with the cost of approved prescribed medicines. The new scheme replaced the drug cost subsidisation and drug refund schemes on 1 July 1999 and has a threshold of £42 per month per individual or family unit. The new scheme effectively merges the best elements of the two previous schemes and is designed to be more streamlined, user friendly and to significantly improve the cash flow situation for families and individuals incurring ongoing expenditure on medicines.
A common list of reimbursable medicines was introduced for the GMS scheme and the new drug payment scheme to ensure equity in relation to the range of medicines paid for by the State under both schemes. The common list provides a comprehensive range of the most modern therapies to meet the needs of patients and is subject to ongoing review and updating on a monthly basis.
