Health Repayment Scheme

The Health (Repayment Scheme) Act, 2006 (the Act) was enacted in June 2006 to provide a legal basis for the repayment of long-stay charges which had been imposed on persons with full eligibility since 1976 i.e. those persons who had a medical card or who were entitled to a medical card.

An entitlement to repayment arose in the case of, 

1) eligible residents of public long-stay facilities and public contracted beds who were alive on 9 December 2004 and had been charged at any time since August 1976
2) estates of eligible persons who were charged and had died on or after 9 December 1998
3) the spouses or children of eligible people, who paid recoverable health charges

Repayment entitlements included recoverable health charges as defined in the Act and an amount to take account of inflation (Consumer Price Index Adjustment) but reduced by the amount of any ex-gratia payment received.

The Act also provided for a fund to be established by the HSE (Repayments Scheme Donations Fund) into which claimants could make a donation, to fund once-off improvements in public health services for dependent older persons and persons with disabilities. The fund could not be applied to meet expenses that would, in the ordinary course of the provision of public health services, have otherwise been expenses met by a State allocation.

The deadline for submitting claims under the Health Repayment Scheme was 31st December 2007.  Therefore, no new applications can be accepted by the Health Service Executive.

The Scheme was administered in accordance with the provisions of the Health (Repayment Scheme) Act 2006 (Act No 17 of 2006)

If you require further information, please contact:

Health Repayment Scheme Unit            
Unit 8, Block 6, Central Business Park
Clonminch, Tullamore, Co. Offaly. R35 F6F8          

Phone: 057 93 18465