Medical Card controversy: Pensioners plan protest as Opposition urges u-turn
THE government's dramatic u-turn on the medical cards issue this week has not impressed opposition TDs, and the general public.
On Tuesday morning, following pressure from Fianna Fail backbenchers, independent TDs supporting the government, and thousands of pensioners from across the state, Taoiseach Brian Cowen announced changes to the scheme which will see "95 per cent of people aged over 70 retaining their entitlement to a medical card".
The Taoiseach raised the annual income threshold for those earning medical cards to €36,000 for a single person and €73,000 for a couple for all new applications from next year.
Even after this climbdown, the government was still subject to protests - with Minister of State John Moloney effectively shouted down by a church-full of pensioners in Dublin.
And several hundred pensioners are still to stage a protest on O'Connell Street this Saturday lunchtime, expected to get under way at 2pm.
Phonsie Franklin, 72, from Prospect, who is organising the protest, said: "Anyone who is over the age of 70 and interested, please come on Saturday. This protest is solely about the over 70s, and their entitlement to the medical card. At the outset, the government wanted to save €100m, but only five per cent of people are losing their medical card. The government are only getting €5m. What the hell is that all about? It just serves to allow the government to con the people again. Next year, 20 per cent of people will lose their card, and the year after it will be 30 per cent."
Limerick East's Deputy Kieran O'Donnell, whose Fine Gael party is due to speak in the Dail on the issue this Wednesday night, hit out at the government saying they "did not go far enough".
"They should have done a full reversal. When Minister Micheal Martin brought free medical care in on May 16, 2001, he said the background to the measure rests in the government's overall commitment to significantly improve eligibility for people in recent years.
"Back at that time, he said there were 30,000 people over 70 who did not qualify, out of more than 1.5m people. Now 20,000 are missing out, out of 1.4m people. This is a much smaller number. It is a retrograde step in terms of public health, a poor use of public purse.
"Elderly people with medical cards are in better health because they are going to the doctors on a frequent basis. Now some will have to go private, so they will not be visiting the doctors as much."
Deputy Jan O'Sullivan said: "The problem for the government is that the elderly do not trust them. If the government removes the legislation to remove access to the medical card, it means the Health Minister at any time can bring down these limits.
"People have worked all their lives, saved, and did not have any luxuries. But now they are being hit. There is huge anger out there, and I can tell you that Labour will be keeping the pressure on the government."
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Tuesday 22 May 2012
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