Social Welfare (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2010
Domiciliary care allowance — amendment.
26.— (1) Section 186B (inserted by section 15 of the Act of 2008) of the Principal Act is amended by inserting the following definition:
“‘medical assessor’ means an officer of the Minister who is a registered medical practitioner;”.
(2) The Principal Act is amended by substituting the following section for section 186C (as amended by section 19 of the Social Welfare (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2008):
“186C.— (1) A person who has not attained the age of 16 years (in this section referred to as the ‘child’) is a qualified child for the purposes of the payment of domiciliary care allowance where—
( a) the child has a severe disability requiring continual or continuous care and attention substantially in excess of the care and attention normally required by a child of the same age,
( b) the level of disability caused by that severe disability is such that the child is likely to require full-time care and attention for at least 12 consecutive months,
( c) the child—
(i) is ordinarily resident in the State, or
(ii) satisfies the requirements of section 219(2),
and
( d) the child is not detained in a children detention school.
(2) A medical assessor shall—
( a) assess all information provided to him or her inrespect of an application for domiciliary care allowance, and
( b) provide an opinion as to whether the child satisfies paragraphs ( a) and ( b) of subsection (1).
(3) In determining whether a child satisfies paragraphs ( a) and ( b) of subsection (1), a deciding officer shall have regard to the opinion, referred to in subsection (2)( b), of the medical assessor.”.