Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 27 May 2014
832. Deputy Thomas P. Broughan asked the Minister for Health further to Parliamentary Question No. 24 of 14 May 2014, what is meant by the statement in the reply that well in excess of 95% of applications were processed within the target of 15 working days; if this means that this is the level of applications which are fully decided or if it refers to the level of applications which have been first looked at within 15 working days. [22780/14]
View answerThe Primary Care Reimbursement Service has a target to have 90% of properly completed medical / GP visit card applications processed within 15 days of the application having been received by the HSE. The current turnaround is 95% within 15 days. This refers to applications, again properly completed, that enable an assessor to make a determination on eligibility under the scheme.
The length of time that it takes for applicants to receive a decision on their medical card applications where a fully completed application form was not submitted, depends on how quickly the applicants respond to the subsequent request for additional information. Applications that remain in process outside of the 15 day period due to incomplete applications, and where the applicant is engaging with the process, are facilitated so that eligibility may be retained in the interim. Once the documentation is received, their assessment is prioritised without delay. This process applies to renewal applications also.
