asked the Minister for Health if he is aware that a considerable number of Corporation tenants, small householders and flat and one-room dwellers are being denied free medical service by Dublin Health Authority; and if, in view of the fact that all such people concerned are ratepayers and that health charges constitute a substantial portion of the Dublin rate, he will now arrange for such people to be given free medical services by Dublin Health Authority.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Free Medical Services.
70.
It is for Dublin Health Authority to decide in each case whether a person is entitled or not to the free general medical service, to which, I presume, the Deputy is referring. Inability to afford to pay privately for such a service is the criterion which the Authority must follow. The type of accommodation occupied by an applicant does not, of course, establish such inability, but the health authority do take into account the amount payable in rent and rates by an applicant before taking their decision.
I could not accept the suggestion that, because a person contributes, as a ratepayer, to the cost of the health services, he should be entitled to avail himself of all those services free.