The Dept of Transport has just launched the newly expanded Free Travel scheme – which will potentially benefit thousands of people with epilepsy across Ireland, and advocated for by Epilepsy Ireland and the Irish Epilepsy League.
The changes to the Free Travel scheme now allow people who are medically certified as being unfit to drive for at least a year or people who have never been able to drive due to a long-term health condition or disability to avail of the benefit.
Historically, the Free Travel scheme could only be accessed when a person was on another qualifying payment from the Department of Social Protection – meaning that many of those who worked or did not meet strict medical criteria for the Departmental payments, did not qualify.
The changes introduced yesterday are something which have been long called for by our colleagues in Epilepsy Ireland – calls which have been supported and amplified by the Irish Epilepsy League as well over the years.
To qualify, patients need to have the application form filled out and certified by their GP. While specialists can also fill out the form and certify a patient as being medically unfit to drive for at least a year, this is not a requirement in order for a patient to access the new benefit.
We very much welcome the changes which are sure to be of benefit to patients with epilepsy.
Further information on the changes and the application process can be found by visiting the Epilepsy Ireland website