Mark Ward
Question:231. Deputy Mark Ward asked the Minister for Health the rationale for differentiating between pensioners under 70 and those over 70 years of age for medical card eligibility. [24811/21]
View answerWednesday, 12 May 2021
Questions (231)
Written answers
Medical Card provision is primarily based on financial assessment. In accordance with the Health Act 1970 (as amended), eligibility for a medical card is determined by the HSE. The HSE assesses each application on a qualifying financial threshold. This is the amount of money that an individual can earn a week and still qualify for a card. It is specific to the individual’s own financial circumstances. The HSE conducts a financial assessment based on an applicant’s household income after tax; PRSI and the Universal Social Charge (USC) have been deducted. Certain expenses are also taken into account.
Regarding persons aged 70 or older, the medical card assessment is based on gross income. This assessment process was introduced following the enactment of the Health Act 2008 which gave effect to Government decisions to end automatic entitlement to a medical card, irrespective of income, for people aged 70 years and over. The new gross income arrangements provided for the vast majority of people aged 70 years and over to continue to hold medical cards under the new income thresholds. The weekly gross income thresholds for eligibility to a medical card for those aged 70 and over were recently increased in November 2020 and are currently €550 per week for a single person and €1050 for a couple.
It should also be noted that persons aged 70 or older may also have their eligibility assessed under the general means tested medical card scheme in the event that they face particularly high expenses, e.g. nursing home or medication costs.