The Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade has insisted that older Laois people will benefit greatly from Fine Gael’s new health legislation.
Charlie Flanagan is highlighting a new Bill which will see a reduction in prescription charges for 330,000 medical card holders aged 70 and over, as well as their dependents, from today.
He said that the reduction will lead to a direct increase in the amount of disposable income that these people will have to spend on a daily basis.
He said: “New health legislation being introduced this week is good news for older people in Laois as it will reduce their prescription charges. This means more money in the pockets of older people as they care for their health.
“The Health Amendment Bill has been introduced to Cabinet today. This legislation reduces the maximum charge for prescription charges for those aged over 70 years with medical cards and their dependents.
“It will mean that from tomorrow prescription charges will reduce from €2.50 to €2.00 per item and total prescription charges will be reduced from €25 to €20 per family, per month. This is set to benefit 330,000 people across the country so it’s great that older people in Laois will benefit.
“This delivers on a key commitment in the Fine Gael manifesto before the last election to reduce the cost of prescription charges for older people.”
The increase in the Old Age Pension, introduced back in October’s Budget, will come into affect next week and Flanagan believes that this move shows Fine Gael’s commitment to ensuring that all sectors of society benefit from the economic progress that has been made.
He said: “Next week also sees the introduction of the €5 per week increase in the Old Age Pension.
“Fine Gael is working hard to protect the economic progress we have made, so that we can use it benefit the people who need it most.
“This includes older people, and we are working hard to ensure that that the fruits of our economic recovery are shared with them, across every region of the country.”
READ MORE – Flanagan: Older Laois people will have more money in their pockets
