There are a range of Irish Healthcare Medication Schemes which determine what you will pay for your medication and the different prescription requirements surrounding your medication.
Medical Card GMS Scheme
A person’s eligibility for the Medical Card scheme depends on the income that you receive weekly. However, a variety of other elements can come into play and medical cards can be provided to someone who would exceed the income threshold but has greater additional healthcare needs. Under the Medical Card Scheme, you will be entitled to free prescription medication. In some rare cases, some medication is not included on the Medical Card Scheme and there may be additional fees or administration requirements to avoid charges. There is a small Government levy required to be paid for each medication that you receive under the Medical Card Scheme.
Doctor’s Visit Card
The Doctor’s Visit Card works for people who barely meet the eligibility criteria for a Medical Card. Also known as the GP (General Practitioner) Visit Card, roughly 10% of the Irish population gets this as an alternative to the regular medical care system.
As the name suggests, the card provides free doctor visits yet it does not offer the additional advantages that come with a Medical Card such as free prescription medication.
Drug Payment Scheme
The Drug Payment Scheme caps the amount you and your family members pay for approved prescription medication & appliances within each calendar month. The monthly threshold goes down from €114 to €100 per month in 2022. The HSE Primary Care Reimbursement Service provides an approved list of medicines or aids provided under the Drugs Payment Scheme.
To qualify for this scheme, you need an ordinarily resident status in Ireland. Being ordinarily resident in Ireland means that you lived in the country for a minimum of one year or that you intend to live here for a minimum of one year.
The scheme covers the person who applied, his or her spouse/partner, and children aged under 18 (or under 23 if in full-time education). It also includes a family member who has a physical, intellectual disability, or illness in the family regardless of age.
When you register for the DPS, you get a plastic swipe card for each person named on the registration form. You need to present this card whenever you have prescriptions filled. You do not have to register with a particular pharmacy for the scheme. However, you need to use the same pharmacy in a particular month if they wish to avoid paying more than the maximum of €114 for convenience.
How to Apply for the Drugs Payment Scheme (DPS)
To apply for the Drugs Payment Scheme online at mydps.ie or file your application form from your Local Health Office. Download a copy of the Drug Payment Scheme application form (pdf).
Long-Term Illness Scheme
If you have a health condition protected by the Long-Term Illness Scheme, you get free drugs, medicines, and medical and surgical appliances for the treatment of that condition. To qualify for the service, you need an ordinarily resident status in Ireland.
Notably, the Long-Term Illness Scheme does not depend on your income or other circumstances. You may also need a Medical Card or DPS card to cover medication that does not apply to your condition.
Administered by the Health Service Executive (HSE) under Section 59 of the Health Act 1970, these medical conditions qualify under the Long-Term Illness Scheme:
- Intellectual disability
- Mental illness (for people under 16 only)
- Diabetes insipidus
- Diabetes mellitus
- Hemophilia
- Cerebral palsy
- Phenylketonuria
- Epilepsy
- Cystic fibrosis
- Multiple sclerosis
- Spina bifida
- Muscular dystrophies
- Hydrocephalus
- Parkinsonism
- Acute leukemia
- Conditions arising from the use of Thalidomide
Application Process
You can apply for a long-term illness card by clicking here.
High-Tech Scheme
Introduced to facilitate the supply of advanced and innovative medicines, the High-Tech Scheme subsidizes the cost of very expensive medication. Typically, it includes drugs to prevent transplant organ rejection and some cancer treatments assisted reproductive technology medicines. It contains new drugs with significant new therapeutic uses or requires prescribing by a consultant in a hospital setting.
High Tech Medicines prescribed in hospitals use a specified form. It comes along with the Medical Card, Drugs Payment, Long Term Illness, or Health Amendment Act Schemes, as appropriate.
The Process of Procurement
The Health Services Executive (HSE) directly pays drug companies for High Tech Medicines. As a result, a prescribed High-Tech Medicine needs notification from the HSE as a signal of authorization to supply it.
If you have a full medical card or medicine used to treat one of the illnesses specified under the Long-Term Illness Scheme (LTI), you get no charge for your High-Tech Medicine. Patients with eligibility under the Health Amendment Act also get an exemption from any charge.
All other patients who don’t have any members under the Irish healthcare system need to pay the monthly Drugs Payment Scheme (DPS) contribution (currently €114). Usually, it does not result in any delay in you receiving your treatment outside of normal pharmacy supply lead times.
Hardship Scheme
Families who have a medical card becomes eligible for the hardship scheme to access treatment materials and other medical supplies that are not provided on the Medical Card scheme.
How to Access the Hardship Scheme
We can make an application on your behalf to seek approval from the HSE to dispense your items for free. After submission, your application receives an assessment based on the patient’s financial circumstances and the urgency of the items requested for the patient’s treatment. Consequently, the paperwork takes some time to go through.
Health Amendment Act Scheme
The Health Amendment Act of 1996 sets out the legal framework for a range of healthcare services established and provided to all men, women, and children suffering from Hepatitis C as a result of administration within the State of contaminated blood and blood products.
All patients infected with Hepatitis C via contaminated blood and blood products receive a Health Amendment Act (HAA) card which gives them access on a statutory basis to a wide range of primary care and hospital-based services.
The HAA card remains one of the most important cards awarded by the HSE, as it gives entitlement to a range of services for the lifetime of the cardholder. If an HAA cardholder has received private health insurance, you need to retain all the other hospital service benefits within the public hospital setting only.
As an HAA cardholder, you get the following benefits within the community setting or outside of the hospital:
- GP Services
- All Prescribed Drugs
- Medications
- Aids And Appliances
- Dental Services
- Optical And Aural Services
- Physiotherapy
- Counseling
- Chiropody
- Home Support
- Home Nursing
- Complementary Therapies
Methadone Scheme
The Methadone Scheme is available to patients in need of opiate substitution therapy. Under the scheme, people are assigned a specific prescriber and pharmacy where there Methadone will be dispensed free of charge.
European Health Insurance Card
The European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) entitles you to free or reduced-cost healthcare in another EU or European Economic Area (EEA) member state. It protects you when you are on vacation or a short-term stay.
Typically, a short-term stay works for people who stay in Ireland for less than three months. A student, however, acts as a visitor for a short-term stay of up to a full academic year.
Several methods apply in your application depending on whether you live in Ireland. It also applies if you live in a country from European Union (EU), European Economic Area (EEA), or Switzerland. You can apply for an EHIC if you are an Irish citizen, an Irish pensioner, or an EU citizen residing in Ireland in person at by clicking here.
Dental Treatment Services Scheme
All medical card users receive coverage by the Dental Treatment Services Scheme (DTSS). It includes a range of medications that can be prescribed for free by your dentist.
Medicine Tax Relief
Irish taxpayers can claim tax relief on payments paid for health care in any calendar year. This includes fees for prescription drugs. We can provide a full annual report for all of your medication costs.
