asked the Minister for Health if he will give the criteria used to calculate farmers' means when being examined for a general medical services card; if his attention has been drawn to the fact that the guidelines being used by community welfare officers in the midwest region can exclude smallholders who are in receipt of unemployment assistance; and further that their income is calculated by only allowing feed and fertiliser as legitimate costs for net income purposes.
Written Answers. - Farmers' Means Testing.
68.
Medical cards are issued on an ability-to-pay means test basis to persons, including farmers, who in the opinion of the Chief Executive Officer of the appropriate health board are unable without undue hardship to provide general practitioner services for themselves and their dependants. Income guidelines are available to assist chief executive officers in reaching a decision about a person's entitlement and to ensure uniformity of decisions in the different health boards. In deciding a person's entitlement all income from all sources is taken into account. The income of farmers and other self-employed persons is assessed on a factual basis.
I would add that provision exists in the Health Acts whereby a person may receive a particular service to which he is not normally entitled if he is considered by the Chief Executive Officer of the appropriate health board to be unable without undue hardship to provide the service for himself or his dependants. This provision ensures that nobody is denied essential services due to inability to pay.