Fundamental Rights Section The Ombudsman Board has turned with this problem to both the competent Bundesministerin für soziale Sicherheit, Generationen und Konsumentenschutz (Federal Minister of Social Security, Generations and Consumer Protection) and to the management of the Austrian Federal Railways and managed to ensure in a first step that these issues are discussed in the negotiations with the transport companies. The outcome of these negotiations is uncertain. 3.5 Discrimination on the ground of social status 3.5.1 Yellow paper-based healthcare voucher instead of e-card (electronic health card) for social assistance recipients – Amending Act establishes a basis for the elimination of discrimination (VA W/681-SOZ/05) Mr. N. N. is currently a social assistance recipient. As social assistance recipient he is not provided with an e-card as all other benefit recipients, but a specific paper-based healthcare voucher with which he can go to the doctor's if he becomes sick. Mr. N. N. feels humiliated by having to present this garish yellow healthcare voucher at the doctor's, thereby unnecessarily showing that he is a social assistance recipient. The fifty-sixth amendment to the ASVG (Allgemeines Sozialversicherungsgesetz - General Social Insurance Act) (Federal Law Gazette I 172/1999) created the legal bases for the introduction of the e-card, which was introduced throughout Austria in 2005. The idea of the e-card was to simplify administration by electronic engineering and facilitate access to medical services for patients. The persons insured do not have to produce a paper-based healthcare voucher anymore when they go to the doctor's office. Such certificates had to be ordered from many insurers only in the event of illness. The e-card replaces the paperbased healthcare vouchers issued by the insurers. Social assistance recipients are, however, excluded from the e-card system. They do not receive an e-card, which they can produce when at the doctor's, but, in the event of illness, a paper-based healthcare voucher which they have to produce at the doctor's office. This makes access to medical services more difficult for persons concerned in the following respects: On the one hand, they have to apply for healthcare vouchers to the social benefits agency as 'supplicants'. On the other hand, they are forced by the production of the garish yellow paper-based healthcare voucher to disclose to the public that they are social assistance recipients. As the case of Ms. N.N. shows, this is perceived as humiliating and dis- 95