A prominent childcare agency and the Labour Party are warning the Government against limiting eligibility for medical card coverage.
The Children's Rights Alliance today called for the Government to make children's medical cards a priority in the Budget, while Labour described reports that a promise to extend eligibility may not be honoured as "despicable".
The comments were a response to an article in today's Irish Timeswhich claimed a promise by the Minister for Health, Mr Martin, to give medical cards to more people on low incomes may not be kept due to economic difficulties.
The article quotes the secretary general of the Department of Health, Mr Michael Kelly, as saying eligibility would be extended only "as resources permit".
The Alliance said: "From the standpoint of the Department of Finance, proper access to medical care for children should be seen as an important cost-savings measure and as an investment in the future growth and development of Ireland. "
"From the standpoint of children and those concerned with their health care, this barrier to treatment violates children's health care rights and is incompatible with the first two Goals of the Government's Health Strategy," it added.
Meanwhile, the Labour Party warned the Government that reneging on its promise to extend medical card eligibility would be a "despicable betrayal".
Labour spokeswoman on health Ms Liz McManus said: "The likelihood that the medical card scheme will not be extended in the foreseeable future due to Government cutbacks is a despicable betrayal of low-income families who were promised this measure in the National Health Strategy and the Programme for Government.
"Such a decision would show that families on low incomes who simply cannot access adequate primary health care do not figure on the priority list of Minister Martin and this Government," she said.
"The current income limits for eligibility for medical cards are hopelessly inadequate".
Yesterday, Mr Martin forecast that 2003 could be a difficult year for the economy. But he said people would have to wait until the Estimates were published on Thursday for his comments on medical-card eligibility.
