The Government has been criticised for promising to extend free GP care to all children under the age of 12 ‘when it still cannot guarantee medical cards for children with the most profound disabilities, life-limiting and life-long conditions'.

According to the Our Children's Health campaign group, this decision is ‘hard to fathom'. Our Children's Health aims to ensure that any child diagnosed with a serious illness or congenital condition is entitled to a full medical card for the duration of their illness.

The group was established last year by Kevin Shortall and his brother-in-law Peter Fitzpatrick, after Mr Shortall had to ‘fight tooth and nail' for a medical card for his daughter who had been diagnosed with leukaemia.

Following Budget 2016, which was announced earlier this week, the group has questioned the Government's decision to extend free GP care to all children under the age of 12, but not extend medical cards to seriously ill children.

It noted that 26,000 children are currently in receipt of Domiciliary Care Allowance. This is provided when it is deemed by the State to involve a ‘disability so severe that the child requires care and attention substantially in excess of another child of the same age'.

"It is clear that all children in this cohort have some level of medical need, from profound to moderate, however 9,000 of the children that meet the criteria for the Domiciliary Care Allowance, do not have medical cards.

"Extrapolating figures used from the existing under-6s scheme, it will cost a further €60 million to extend cover to the estimated 242,000 children under the age of 12 that are not already covered. To extend full medical cards to all children in receipt of this allowance would cost less than a third of that figure," the group pointed out.

It emphasised that it has no objection to the concept of free GP care for all children, ‘all we are seeking is that the State guarantees free medical care to children with serious medical need first'.

It added that even if some of these children are covered by the under-12 scheme, this will be of little use to them, as most have complex care needs and are usually treated in hospital and rehabilitation settings, not by their GP.

Our Children's Health, Down Syndrome Ireland and the Jack & Jill Foundation plan to come together next week to urge the Government to grant full medical cards to all children in receipt of the Domiciliary Care Allowance.

Meanwhile, Our Children's Health co-founder, Peter Fitzpatrick, has announced that he is to step aside from the group and run as an independent candidate in the next General Election. For more information on his aims, click here

For more information on Our Children's Health, click here