Travel2Care frequently asked questions

Travel2Care is a limited transportation assistance fund which has been made available by the National Cancer Control Programme (NCCP) to patients travelling to the eight designated cancer care centres or approved satellite centres. It is administered by the Irish Cancer Society. 

 

The purpose of this nationwide transportation assistance fund is to support people who have a genuine financial difficulty in meeting some of the costs of travelling to their current appointments.

The hospitals covered by Travel2Care are:

• Beaumont Hospital, Dublin
• Mater Misericordiae Hospital, Dublin
• St. James’s Hospital, Dublin
• St. Vincent’s Hospital, Dublin
• Cork University Hospital
• Waterford Regional Hospital
• Galway University Hospital
• University Hospital Limerick
• Letterkenny General Hospital, Donegal (approved satellite centre)
• St Luke’s Hospital, Dublin
• Our Lady’s Children’s Hospital Crumlin, Dublin
• Whitfield Clinic, Waterford
• Altnagelvin Area Hospital, Derry
• Tallaght University Hospital

You must satisfy the eligibility criteria:

• Reside permanently in Ireland.
• Have a genuine financial need and are having difficulties in attending appointments.
• Are travelling over 50kms to a designated cancer care centre or approved satellite centre.
• Are travelling for assessment, diagnosis and/or surgery/active treatment at a designated centre or approved satellite centre. 
• Have not qualified for or cannot avail for other schemes, such as transport funded by the HSE or voluntary transport initiatives such as our Volunteer Driver Service.

There are two types of application forms for Travel2Care:
 
Travel2Care Form A is for Cancer Tests (assessment & investigations). You can get Travel2Care Form A by: 

• Downloading it here;
• by post if you call 01 231 0522;
• or you can write to Travel2Care, The Irish Cancer Society, 43-45 Northumberland Road, Dublin 4. 

Travel2Care Form B is for ongoing travel and is available only from a healthcare professional such as a medical social worker or your cancer nurse.

If you would like to know the status of your application please call 01 231 0522.
 
Please note, the Irish Cancer Society only gives out information to patients or the health care professional who makes an application. We do not give out information to family members or any other persons. 

Travel2Care can only accept one application for ongoing treatment and we must have the dates of your treatment plan before we can process the application.

The scheme is only for patients attending one of the listed hospitals, travelling 50km or greater and who have a genuine financial difficulty in meeting some of the costs of travelling to current appointments.

We are not able to provide financial assistance towards appointments that have not taken place in the last month. 

Applications take 10 working days to be processed from the date they are received. 

 

If an application is successful payment is sent directly to the patient and an email sent to the healthcare professional that made the application. 

 

(see Question 16).

Patients can complete application Form A - Cancer Tests themselves. This form is for investigations and assessments.

 

Form B- Ongoing Treatment can only be filled out by a healthcare professional. 

 

See Question 4 for more information on the two types of forms.

Travel2Care is a very limited fund. It is unlikely that we can contribute to the costs of a companion travelling with you.

Payment is made via electronic fund transfer to a patient’s or next of kin’s account.

Travel2Care contributes to some of your travelling costs. It does not cover all of the costs. 

Travel2Care will cover some of the costs of parking if it is detailed on the form. (The decision of an application is final and is based on the information provided on the form).

Applications that are not legible/missing information on other supports that the patient may have availed of, that have insufficient information on the treatment plan or the relevant payment details have been provided can call contribute to a delay.

It is recommended that you speak with a hospital Medical Social Worker to see if they are any other financial support networks available to you. 

Yes, if they are eligible, you may receive funding from Travel2Care and the Children's Fund.

Payment can be made to a credit union bank account. Payment can also be made to a next of kin’s bank account. 

 

No other method of payment except electronic fund transfer is available through the Irish Cancer Society.

Applications take two weeks to process from the day they are received in the Irish Cancer Society. 

 

This may increase to three weeks or longer if we do not have all the information requested on an application form.

Contact the Patient Travel and Financial Support Team on 01 231 0522 and we will process the application as soon as possible

No, but receipts may help. We ask that an estimate of transport costs with a breakdown is included in your application. For example, this may include a breakdown of costs for fuel, toll fees, Luas, train and parking.

f it is outlined on the application form and the reasons given are genuine as to why a taxi has been taken.

 

For example if you are not be well enough to travel by public transport, there is no hospital transport system in place, there is no other voluntary transport services available such as our Volunteer Driver Service or a family member or friend is not available to take you, then Travel2Care may be able to cover some of the costs incurred.  

 

Travel2Care contributes to the costs to hospital appointments; it does not cover all of the costs. 

Applications are reviewed on a case by case basis and the amount awarded will depend on the patient’s treatment plan and method of transport.  There is no set amount.  Please be aware that Travel2Care is a very limited fund. 

You can make contact with Citizens Information about your entitlements (medical cards/illness benefit/carers allowance), speak to  the Money Advice and Budgeting Service (MABS) or visit a Community Welfare Officer.   
 
The Irish Cancer Society has compiled a booklet Managing the Financial Impact of Cancer, which lists what payments are available, what you may be entitled to and how to get them. You can download a copy of this booklet here or call us on 01 231 0522 to request a copy by post. 

The Irish Cancer Society has compiled a booklet Managing the Financial Impact of Cancer, which lists what payments are available, what you may be entitled to and how to get them. You can download a copy of this booklet here or call us on 01 231 0522 to request a copy by post.