Posted by Robert Troy TD
Parents and children from Co Westmeath were among the dozens of families protesting in Dublin this week against changes to the Domiciliary Care Allowance (DCA).
The Government instigated a review of the DCA towards the end of last year, which resulted in half of the children with autism and severe intellectual disabilities suddenly losing their payments in the past few months. The Minister for Social Protection Joan Burton is now considering a second review, which could result in more children losing their DCA.
Longford Westmeath Fianna Fáil TD Robert Troy met with the parents at Leinster House on Tuesday (19 June 2012) and voiced his anger at the cuts.
“These parents are simply looking for fairness for their children,” said Deputy Troy. “To target the most vulnerable children in this way, the children who are most in need of support, is grossly unfair.
“This Government moved the Domiciliary Care Allowance from the Department of Health to the Department of Social Protection and began a ‘review’ that resulted in a shocking level of families losing the payment without any warning. Not only were these families left suddenly without the support they need, they were then unable to get a meeting with the Minister to explain the impact of this on their lives.
“Fianna Fáil has called for a complete overhaul in the system of assessing children for the Domiciliary Care Allowance. At the moment, the system clearly discriminates against children with intellectual disabilities. So far this Government has refused to listen to families affects by the DCA cuts and parents have had no input into changes in the system. This must change.
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