Sir, – It’s hardly a big surprise to hear that the Government is to review how medical cards are allocated. Well, not the Government. It has decided to set up an “expert panel” to decide on what range of conditions should apply to who should get medical cards.
What does this mean? What does it say about the system that it had put in place up to now? Or rather the people who made the decisions up to now? If they didn’t have the expertise, why were they filling the expert role up to now? – Yours, etc,
ED McDONALD,
Stradbrook Road,
Blackrock,
Co Dublin.
Sir, – Why is it that, if you have a child with a chronic illness and apply for a medical card, the “system” demands that you must receive that medical card for the entire family, and then decides that, as the family income is above a certain level, that card is refused?
Why can the “system” not permit a medical card for the sick child only, since that is all that the majority of parents of sick children want? Surely even the most cold-hearted “system” must recognise that, no matter how well off the family, a chronically ill child requires constant medical care, at great expense and stress.
Compiling a list of qualifying illnesses will not provide a solution either, as inevitably some very sick child will find that they are not on the list, leading to further distress for an already overburdened family.
It should be possible for the family GP to furnish a letter, accompanied by a simple form, to the HSE, leading to the provision of a medical card which would remain in force in perpetuity. Or am I being naive? – Yours, etc,
STEPHEN MacDONAGH,
Sonesta,
Malahide,
Co Dublin.
Sir, – What does it tell us about our political masters that a review of medical card withdrawals is now to take place?
It is hardly a coincidence that this happens only after their party positions of power have been rocked to the foundations by the recent election results.
Does this not tell us that loyalty to party takes priority over loyalty to the people whom they are supposed to serve? How sick is that? – Yours, etc,
GEAROID KILGALLEN,
Crosthwaite Park South,
Dún Laoghaire,
Co Dublin.