Vol. 554 No. 5
1071 Mr. Durkan asked the Minister for Health and Children if a person (details supplied) in County Kildare will be entitled to a domiciliary care allowance in view of the fact that their child has been diagnosed with dyslexia; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16247/02]
The domiciliary care allowance, DCA, was introduced in 1973 by way of circular 24/73 and is payable under section 61 of the Health Act, 1970. This is a monthly allowance paid by health boards. It provides financial support to the carers of eligible children up to the age of 16 years whose disability is so severe that they require care and attention which is considerably in excess of that normally required by a child of the same age. The allowance is not paid in respect of children maintained on a full time basis in special or residential institutions. However, the allowance may be paid on a pro-rata basis for the number of nights spent at home, e.g. during weekends or holidays, by eligible children who attend special or residential institutions.
To be eligible to receive this allowance, applicants must satisfy the following conditions: they must be under 16 years of age; the disability must be so severe that they require from another person constant care or supervision, i.e. continual or continuous care or supervision substantially greater than that which would normally be required by a child of the same age; the constant care or supervision must be provided by the parents themselves or by arrangement by them with another person or persons; the disability must be present at the time of the application and be likely to last for at least a year; where medical confirmation is supplied which pre-dates the actual date of application and the health board is satisfied that the child requires continual care and attention substantially in excess of that normally required by a child of the same age, then payment may be made from the date of medical confirmation.
Only the means of the child should be taken into account in determining eligibility for an allowance – the means of the parents should not be considered. "Means" in this context includes payments of compensation, following a court action or otherwise, in respect of injuries or disabilities sustained. Where there is more than one eligible child in a family, a full DCA payment should be made in respect of each eligible child. In some cases, depending on medical condition, eligibility is reviewed at regular intervals, e.g. if the child's condition improves, he or she may no longer meet the criteria for eligibility.
