Activist Cara Darmody addresses Tipperary council meeting about assessments of needs crisis

Activist Cara Darmody was asked to address Tipperary County Council during their monthly meeting which was held in Clonmel on June 9.

Cara began by saying: “There is a children's disability crisis in Ireland, but you already know that, because it came up on the doorsteps of the last election.

"Over 15,000 children are not rotting on HSE assessment of needs waiting lists. The HSE recently revealed that that number will grow to 25,000 by this Christmas.”

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Cara told the meeting that in Tipperary there are over 400 families waiting for an assessment of needs meeting, making the waiting time in the county four years.

She pressed that these long waiting times are causing permanent damage to these children.

“We need an urgency that is not there at present” Cara warned.

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Cara ended her speech by urging councillors to contact TD’s and senators that they are affiliated with about this issue.

Cara continued “the time has come for us all to put party politics aside, I urge you all to take action and immediately contact your TD’s and senators” she concluded.

Cara will address the Oireachtas joint committee on disability matters on Wednesday this week, and make calls for more to be done to solve this issue.