The recent Health Amendment Bill 2017 will ensure children with EB in receipt of Domiciliary Care Allowance will have easier access  to a Full Medical Card.

Domiciliary Care Allowance (DCA) is a monthly payment for a child aged under 16 with a severe disability, who requires ongoing care and attention.

This Bill automatically entitles every child that qualifies for DCA to a Full Medical Card.

Online Medical Card registration will be available from 1st May 2017 with all Medical Cards valid from 1^st June 2017.

How the new DCA will work:

• For a child in receipt of DCA but who currently does not have a medical card, the parent or guardian will register for the scheme either online or through a paper-based form.
• For a child who is currently eligible for a medical card (under discretion or otherwise) and is confirmed to be in receipt of DCA, the HSE will automatically issue them a medical card.
• For a child who is currently eligible for a GP Visit Card (under discretion or otherwise), this card will automatically be upgraded to a full medical card.

At present there are 33,000 children in receipt of DCA, however a startling 9,800 of those children have not been eligible for a full medical card.

The voluntary organisation, Our Children’s Health, lobbied the Irish Government over 1028 days, through one General Election, three Ministers for Health, numerous advisory groups, 65,000 signatures and were instrumental in ensuring all children with a serious illness receive a Full Medical Card.

DEBRA Ireland have met with Our Children’s Health several times to offer support and inform them of the needs of people living with EB. We are delighted to see the hard work of Our Children’s health pay off in such a beneficial way for all children living with serious illnesses in Ireland today.

If you would like to speak to a member of the DEBRA team in relation to any of the above please contact us on 01-4126924 or [email protected]

Fiona Aherne, DEBRA Ireland