The Minister for Health, Mr Martin, refused to say yesterday whether or not he would re-examine the freeze on extending medical card entitlement.
He also said it would be "totally unreasonable" for doctors to refuse to co-operate with the introduction of the new community health services over the issue and that such a withdrawal would cause difficulties for his Department.
Mr Martin announced on Wednesday that he planned to extend the medical card eligibility to 200,000 extra people beginning in 2003. The timeframe, however, would depend on "budgetary considerations".
Asked yesterday whether he would revisit plans for the freeze, in light of a statement by Dr Kevin Kelly of the Irish Medical Organisation's GP committee that all doctors should withhold co-operation from the Department on its community care plans because of the freeze, Mr Martin said he had set out his position on Wednesday.
"The plan in 2002 is to concentrate on increasing the number of hospital beds and to look at disability issues. These are also equity issues. We'd like to do more but 2002 is going to be a tight year financially."
Asked again whether he would re-examine the medical card issue, he said he had just answered the question. Asked whether that meant the answer was "No" he said: "I've just said what I have to say."
His Department would be negotiating with the IMO on the issue, he continued. Asked whether he was worried about indications from the IMO that its GP members may withdraw its co-operation from the new community care health teams he said: "I think that would be totally unreasonable. The doctors were the ones that came looking for primary care teams. There is no doubt that if we don't get co-operation in implementing the plans it will cause difficulties."
