ANALYSIS:Political expediency by the FF-led government in 2001 meant scheme was introduced in haste, writes Eithne Donnellan
THE ABOLITION of the automatic entitlement to medical cards for over-70s has caused widespread concern and unrest.
These concerns manifested themselves yesterday in a large number of calls to the HSE's helpline and to Age Action Ireland which said it was "snowed under" with calls from worried older people.
Understandably, older people, who have had the benefit of these cards which allowed them visit their GP and get whatever drugs they needed over the past seven years without ever having to dip into their pockets are now worried about the hassles of a means test and the impact on their budgets of the possible loss of a medical card.
But when these cards were introduced for this age group in 2001 by the then Fianna Fáil-led government, in advance of a general election, many argued the resources should have gone instead on giving more medical cards to families just above the income threshold for medical card eligibility.
So hasty was the government in announcing medical cards for all over-70s no proper calculations were carried out on the numbers who would benefit.
At the time of its introduction in July 2001 it was estimated an additional 39,000 people would become entitled to a non-means-tested medical card. But this soon proved to be in error as by December 2001 some 63,000 new over-70s had registered.
Furthermore, the government decision was announced before any negotiations had taken place with GPs on how much they would be paid for treating the new over-70s card holders. The Irish Medical Organisation, representing the GPs, had the government over a barrel. The GPs were paid three times more, some €462 a year, for treating these new over-70s patients.
As a result the cost of extending free medical cover to everyone in the State over the age of 70 was underestimated by more than €50 million.
The Government has now taken the opportunity presented by the economic downturn to abolish the scheme altogether but taking something back which older people had got used to could prove to be politically damaging in the long term.
Minister for Health Mary Harney argues many older people will continue to retain a medical card or doctor-visit card after a means test.
Moreover, while the abolition of the cards for all, irrespective of their means, has been welcomed by the St Vincent de Paul because of the greater equity it will bring to the medical card system, many groups working with older people believe this group will also be among the losers as a result of this decision. They say it will result in poorer health among older people who will be less likely to have illnesses detected early. This will exert further pressure on hospital beds, costing more in the long run.