asked the Minister for Health if he will review the procedure whereby long term illness books are automatically cancelled when a person receives a medical card, bearing in mind the fact that under the medical card system a patient has to get repeated monthly prescriptions at cost to the GMS board and at considerable inconvenience to himself, which could be avoided if the long term illness card continued to be valid.
Written Answers. - Long Term Illness Scheme.
550.
Medical cards are issued to persons who, in the opinion of the chief executive officer of the appropriate health board, would be unable to provide general practitioner services including the supply of drugs, for themselves and their depen-dants without incurring an undue level of hardship. The long term illness scheme provides drugs free of charge where prescribed for the treatment of one of a specific list of illnesses.
Given the nature of the services provided, possession of a medical card comprehends the benefits of possession of a long term illness book and these are therefore withdrawn on issue of a medical card. The nature of the conditions listed in the long term illness scheme is such that regular consultation with a medical practitioner is likely in any event so that significant inconvenience to the patient should not generally arise on issue of a medical card. It is unlikely that the cost of supplying drugs through the medical card scheme would be greater than through the long term illness scheme because of the financial terms upon which drugs are supplied in the GMS relative to normal retail sales of drugs.