Q. Is there a way to check online if a medical card is valid and a patient is eligible for services?

A. Many of the certified GP practice software systems, such as Helix Practice Manager and CompleteGP, automatically check patient eligibility. They do this by connecting over the internet with the PCRS, submitting the medical card number and getting a response to indicate if the card is valid or not. This is done in the background, without human intervention. Your support staff can also do this manually, either online or by text message. The web address for checking online is www.sspcrs.ie/portal/checker/index.jsp.

For details of eligibility via text message, send a text with the word Check followed by a space and then the medical card number and letter to 087 9097867. Within a few seconds you will receive a response containing details on any eligibility found. The response provided for the medical card scheme is currently: 'The client 9999999A was born 09/02/2001 and has a valid GMS card starting from 09/04/2001 to 31/10/2007 and is assigned to Dr 99999.' Eligibility confirmation by SMS is subject to normal mobile network charges for SMS texts.