THOUSANDS of healthcare workers in Limerick and across Ireland have been excluded from receiving the Covid-19 bonus payment, according to the Irish Wheelchair Association.
A bonus payment of €1,000 was promised to frontline healthcare workers by the government in January, but thousands of State-funded, frontline health staff who work in the community instead of hospitals and residential settings have not been included in the payment scheme.
These staff are known as Section 39 healthcare workers and, although funded by the HSE, remain ineligible for the €1,000 bonus payment.
During the pandemic over 2,200 HSE-funded Irish Wheelchair Association staff visited people with disabilities in their homes mornings, throughout the day and again at night, providing personal care and assistance, maintaining essential services for 5,600 people across the country. This service continued every day of the pandemic.
The Irish Wheelchair Association are hoping the government will reconsider the decision of not including these workers in the scheme.
“We are urging Minister Stephen Donnelly to reconsider the bonus payment criteria and extend the scheme to include Section 39 State-funded healthcare staff,” said Joan Carthy, National Advocacy Manager of the Irish Wheelchair Association.
“On behalf of our members, we have written to Health Minister Stephen Donnelly asking that their The work of dedicated staff who have worked tirelessly and selflessly throughout the pandemic should not be degraded and dismissed simply because they work in homes instead of hospitals” Ms Carthy added.
