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Disabled patients Once someone has been in hospital for a period of time their benefits get reduced. In April 2003 during his budget statement the Chancellor announced an immediate change to the downrating rules as they affected pensions, incapacity benefit and income support period. This increased the period before any reduction of benefits took place from 6 to 52 weeks.
However, the rules did not change for disability living allowance, attendance allowance or carer's allowance.
We are concerned about the potential hardship caused by reductions in these benefits when a disabled adult or child goes into hospital. Recent research 'Penalised for being ill - a report on reductions to state pensions and benefits in hospital' carried out by www.ageconcern.org.uk found widespread confusion and hardship amongst older people whose benefit had been reduced while they were in hospital.
We believe that similar problems are experienced by disabled people and by parents caring for a disabled child. We would like you to tell us about any difficulties you (or the people you advise) may have encountered. Such difficulties may include:
We have had some success in raising the profile of this issue in Parliament, we have had some questions submitted as well as presenting evidence to a cross party group of MPs who wrote to Maria Eagle MP the then Minister responsible for this area. There was also an Early Day Motion (a petition which MPs can sign to raise the profile of certain issues).
We are still looking for evidence of the hardship which these rigid rules cause so please do fill in the questionnaire below:
There are a range of extra costs which people can incur:
The House of Commons Health Committee are holding an Inquiry into ‘Co-payments and charges in the NHS’. The deadline for written submissions was 7 December 2005 and the Committee will be taking oral evidence in the New Year. We have submitted written evidence to the Inquiry which we will publish and make available on this site when the Committee give permission. In addition to the costs outlined above the Committee are also interested in the effect of prescription charges.
We have covered the issue of hospital costs (access denied and free at the point of delivery?) in our Disability Rights Bulletin and attached are two articles which give more information about the difficulties from the perspective of cancer patients.
