Aisling Dempsey
Question:138. Deputy Aisling Dempsey asked the Minister for Health her plans to further increase medical card income limits; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [28388/26]
View answerTuesday, 21 April 2026
Questions (138)
Written answers
I want to assure the House that my Department keeps medical card issues under ongoing review.
By way of context, under the Health Act 1970, eligibility for a medical card is primarily based on a financial assessment carried out by the HSE. The HSE assesses each application against a qualifying financial threshold. In practical terms, this is the amount of money an individual can earn in a week and still qualify for a card, and it is specific to the applicant’s own financial circumstances.
For people under 70, eligibility is assessed under the general means-tested medical card thresholds. These are based on an applicant’s household net income, taking account of specified expenses. For those aged 70 and over, eligibility is assessed under medical card income thresholds that are based on gross income.
It is also important to note that the HSE may exercise discretion and grant a medical card in difficult circumstances, including where an applicant would otherwise exceed the relevant threshold.
Over 1.5 million people now hold a Medical Card. A further almost 800 thousand hold a GP Visit Card. That means that about 2.3m have access to free GP care
Finally, there is a programme of work underway in my Department, as part of Sláintecare 2025+, to review the existing eligibility framework. The purpose of this review is to clearly assess what is working well and to inform future policy proposals on the eligibility framework, based on robust evidence, as we progress implementation of Sláintecare.