The National Disability Inclusion Strategy Transport Working Group (TWG), comprising members from a range of Departments, agencies and Disabled Persons Organisations, was tasked under Action 104 to review all Government-funded transport and mobility supports for those with a disability, including the Disabled Drivers and Disabled Passengers Scheme (DDS). The NDIS TWG final report was published on 24th February 2023 and welcomed the proposal put forward by my Department that the DDS should be replaced with a needs-based, grant-aided vehicular adaptation scheme, i.e. to provide direct financial assistance to individuals needing vehicle adaptations according to their needs, to meet their personal transport requirements and ultimately to facilitate independence and participation in society.
The NDIS TWG final report also noted both the outdated approach of the Disabled Drivers and Disabled Passengers Scheme and the fact that the scheme needed to be addressed as a matter of priority. The Working Group agreed that proposals in this regard was a clear deliverable on which work could begin in the relatively near future.
The NDIS TWG final report does not set out next steps with respect to the new scheme. This will be a matter for Government decision.
In relation to the Disabled Drivers Medical Board of Appeal (DDMBA) whose members resigned in November 2021, I had hoped that a new DDMBA would have been established by now and that the appeals process would have recommenced.
You should note that five members are legislatively required for a functional Board, however the recruitment of these members has proved to be challenging. In this regard, four expressions of interest campaigns have been organised by the Department of Health – 3 of them in 2022, and one in April to replace a previously nominated person. The necessary 5 members have been nominated by the Minister for Health, with Garda vetting currently being undertaken for the most recently nominated candidate – this process was completed for the other four candidates at the start of the year.
An added complication to the recommencement of the DDMBA is that in February 2023, the National Rehabilitation Hospital (NRH) ( the body that has hosted the DDMBA since 2000) indicated their intention to withdraw their services with immediate effect. Finance and Health officials have been actively seeking to implement new arrangements since, including engaging with the NRH. Some progress has been made on this matter insofar as the NRH has indicated a willingness to once again host the DDMBA once certain conditions are met. It is important to note that requests for appeal hearings can still be sent to the DDMBA secretary based in the NRH.
Assessments for the primary medical certificate, by the HSE, are continuing to take place. In this regard, an important point to make is that even though there has been no appeal mechanism since the previous Board resigned, applicants who have been deemed not to have met one of the six eligibility criteria required for a PMC are entitled to request another PMC assessment six months after an unsuccessful PMC assessment.
I have no role in relation to the granting or refusal of PMCs and the HSE and the Medical Board of Appeal must be independent in their clinical determinations.
As at Q3 2022 (latest data available) there were 30,049 recipients of, and 32,314 vehicles benefitting from, DDS provisions. As at end December 2022, 1,181 applicants for a PMC had been refused (of 3,621 or 33% of all applications received). Data on successive requests for a PMC assessment are not available.
