People who have savings should not

Macha

is_that_so wrote: »

A councillor it appears, not a TD.

http://www.breakingnews.ie/ireland/mhidcwgbsnau/

As for the Harney story, there are competition issues to the Govt renegotiating with IMO.

Well how did they manage to negotiate with the pharmacists last year? Surely it's the same thing.

Kline

is_that_so wrote: »

A councillor it appears, not a TD.

http://www.breakingnews.ie/ireland/mhidcwgbsnau/

Tomato, Tomato -

Kline

19th October 2008

Dear XXXX

Thank you for contacting me with your concerns regarding the withdrawal of the medical card for over 70’s.

It is a disgrace that the Government is looking to our old age pensioners to make €100 million savings on the health budget by abolishing the automatic entitlement of the over 70’s to medical cards. For a long time we have had a two-tier health service. This Budget decision will effectively give our pensioners a four-tier health system: some over 70’s will have medical cards, others will have GP cards, some will receive the €400 grant while others will get nothing at all.

There is genuine fear, anger and utter confusion everywhere.

The re-introduction of the means test for medical cards for over 70’s has to go down as one of the most cynical political stunts we have seen in quite some time, having been removed a year before one election, only to be re-introduced a year after another one.

Because of public outrage the Government has already made some changes to their initial budget proposals. However we will continue to fight for the principle of automatic entitlement of people over 70 to medical cards.

It has already been pointed out that the financial institutions are being bailed out by the taxpayer to the tune of the €480 billion guarantee and that the Government is only charging the financial institutions €1 billion. This is a miniscule amount.

If the Government were to even increase their charge on the banks to €1.1 billion there would be no need to take away the right of the over 70’s to the medical card.

I will be raising these issues in the Dail this week when the Budget debate continues. The Labour Party will continue to oppose this awful budget.

Yours sincerely,

Joe

JOE COSTELLO TD
Dáil Éireann
Dublin 2

Kline

If you agree, write to your local TD, you will find them below here, and urge them to put forward a "vote of no confidence" in this government.

Dublin
http://www.dublin.ie/politics/home.htm

I dont have the rest of the country.

is_that_so

taconnol wrote: »

Well how did they manage to negotiate with the pharmacists last year? Surely it's the same thing.

Doctors are classified as independent businesses.

From the Competition Authority.

http://www.rte.ie/news/2008/1020/health.html

...

The Competition Authority has said that the Irish Medical Organisation cannot negotiate with the Government on GPs' fees to try to end the controversy over medical cards for the over 70s.

On RTÉ Radio's News at One, director of the authority's monopolies division Dr Stanley Wong said any such talks would be a breach of Irish and European competition law.
...

The_Conductor

ninty9er wrote: »

I agree with a lot of the sentiment there. BUT FOR F*CK SAKE,

can people get it inot their heads that the banks....none of them....have gotten ONE CENT from the taxpayer.

The effect of the sovereign guarantee on bank loans is their borrowing costs have been considerably reduced while the borrowing costs of the Irish government has increased. The National Treasury Management Agency will have to raise roughly 5.6 billion by April '09 along with refinancing about 28 billion before the end of 2010. Our new loans are going to cost us roughly 18 basis points more than they would otherwise have done, and refinancing our current loans roughly 13 basis points. Over the 2 year period of the bank guarantee- there will be a net cost to the tax payer of approximately 1.3 billion Euro- being the additional interest paid on national debt that would not have been incurred, had we not forwarded the loan guarantee to the banking sector. The banking sector are to pay 1 billion over the 2 years- meaning a shortfall of approx. 300 million for the taxpayer.

We may not be paying money directly to the banks- but we are paying much higher interest rates on our national debt as a result of the banking guarantees, than we would otherwise have done- thats where the money is going.......

Macha

is_that_so wrote: »

Doctors are classified as independent businesses.

From the Competition Authority.

http://www.rte.ie/news/2008/1020/health.html

And pharmacists are not?

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2008/1020/1224279464873.html

The Minister said under existing legislation the State could negotiate on price individually with each professional. However, with more than 2,000 GPs holding contracts with the State, this was not practical.

Ms Harney proposed that a new tariff-setting body be established to get around such restrictions. She suggested that the new body could be similar to the Review Body on Higher Remuneration in the Public Sector.

Ms Harney last year established an independent body to examine fees for pharmacists

As I said earlier, it's a thousand times harder to take away than it is to give. FF should be cursing Bertie's vote-grabbing antics of a few years ago. And of course he's nowhere to be seen when the sh1t hits the fan.

is_that_so

taconnol wrote: »

And pharmacists are not?

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2008/1020/1224279464873.html

Dr Stanley Wong explains. Very convoluted.
http://www.rte.ie/news/2008/1020/news1pm_av.html?2438320,null,209

Kline

is_that_so wrote: »

From the Competition Authority.

So it would seem that the government realized their mistake on the pensioners medical cards, has tried to do a u-turn and head in a different direction without doing any homework on either area.

They have walked themselves into a hole, of their own volition - Check. No wonder he's putting off going to China , he's afraid he'll be coming back to.. . .well. . . . Check Mate.

Macha

is_that_so wrote: »

Dr Stanley Wong explains. Very convoluted.
http://www.rte.ie/news/2008/1020/news1pm_av.html?2438320,null,209

Ah! I have a headache after listening to that.

Kline

Due to public outcry Age Action Ireland is holding a public meeting on Tuesday October 21st at 11:00am, O’Callaghan Alexander Hotel, Fenian Street, Off Merrion Square, Dublin 2.

http://www.ageaction.ie/

is_that_so

taconnol wrote: »

Ah! I have a headache after listening to that.

Basically what he is saying is that the IMO cannot negotiate but the government can "consult" the IMO and doctors and anyone else they want. It's a bit like the talks about talks that was the peace process in its early days.

It might go something like this. The IMO can make noises about what they think doctors might find acceptable in those "consultations". Based on those noises the Govt. can then suggest a figure that the IMO "thinks" might not be unacceptable and doctors will miraculously come out of the woodwork, en masse, to sign up to the new system.