People in supported rental sector have poorest health, research finds

A medical card eligibility system that better incorporates healthcare needs rather than solely income could provide greater protection for vulnerable groups, new research from the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) has found.

The study, which will be presented at a Budget Perspectives conference on Thursday, showed significant variations in health and medical card coverage across supported renters, private renters, and homeowners, with people in the supported rental sector having the poorest health outcomes. It also found that the percentage of those in the supported rental sector who have medical cards declined between 2021 and 2015 (to 74 per cent from 87 per cent).

Less than half of employed supported renters possess a medical card, despite facing a high risk of poverty and having incomes that qualify them for public housing assistance.

The researchers said the variations should not be interpreted as showing causation, but it was important to identify the patterns for a variety of reasons including healthcare delivery. The research said limited information exists about the relationship between housing and healthcare in Ireland. These findings, combined with previous research demonstrating the financial benefits of possessing a medical card in reducing the burden of healthcare, highlight the significant financial risk faced by vulnerable private renters in the event of a health shock.

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[ Almost 40,000 fewer medical cards issued last year ]

“Greater synchronisation between housing and health, and policies such as indexing income thresholds for medical cards, would see many vulnerable groups benefiting the most, including employed supported renters and lower-income private renters,” said Brendan Walsh of the ESRI, who worked on the report.

“The lack of medical card coverage for individuals with chronic conditions and housing insecurity exacerbates their risk of poverty,” said Harry Humes, another of the authors of the report.

“The combined financial burden of increasing rents and healthcare costs could pose significant vulnerability. A medical card eligibility system that better incorporates healthcare needs rather than solely income could provide greater protection for these vulnerable groups,” he said.

The findings, combined with previous research demonstrating the financial benefits of possessing a medical card in reducing the burden of healthcare, highlight the significant financial risk faced by vulnerable private renters in the event of a health shock, the researchers said.