Medical cards: The overall number of people with medical cards in the State has increased slightly this month, according to the latest figures.
However, the statistics from the Primary Care Reimbursement Service, formerly the General Medical Services Payments Board, also show that 1,000 people lost their medical card eligibility over the past month.
Worst hit has been the southern region with some 431 people in Cork and Kerry losing their eligibility.
A further 325 people in the western region, covering counties Galway, Mayo and Roscommon, also lost their medical cards last month, while in the northeast region - covering counties Cavan, Monaghan, Louth and Meath - a total of 244 people lost medical cards.
Figures for medical card eligibility fluctuate from month to month, and just as in some regions the number of medical card holders dropped last month, in other regions eligibility increased.
In the eastern region, an additional 741 people were granted medical cards last month, while in the midwest the benefit was extended to a further 268 people. Eligibility also increased in the midlands where a further 51 medical cards were handed out, in the northwest where 107 additional people got medical cards and in the southeast where a further eight people had their applications for medical cards accepted.
Nationwide, 175 more people have medical cards this month than had them in June.
The news comes just a week after GPs voted unanimously to accept Labour Relations Commission (LRC) proposals aimed at ending a dispute over the introduction of doctor-only medical cards. The LRC recommended doctors get once-off payments worth of €7 million for signing up 200,000 people due to get the new cards, which were promised by the Minister for Health Mary Harney in last November's Estimates. The cards will cover the cost of doctor visits only.
Last November, Ms Harney also promised an extra 30,000 full medical cards for this year. Ms Harney said disposable rather than net income would be taken into account for medical card means-testing.