A key announcement for disabled people in yesterday’s emergency Budget was the introduction of medical assessments for all DLA claimants from 2013-14. Designed as a cost-saving exercise, the coalition government is introducing this measure to ensure DLA payments are only made for as long as a claimant needs them. This is alongside an increase of 2.5% in the rate of VAT to 20%.

There are four key issues arising from this which concern ECDP, as follows:

1. Introducing medical assessment suggests an assumption that many who receive these vital benefits do not deserve them. This confuses the care and support needs of disabled and older people with being in work. DLA simply recognises that there are extra costs associated with day-to-day living if you are a disabled person and indeed many of those who receive DLA do work.

2. We believe that part of the increase in DLA uptake relates to the fact more people are living independently rather than in a residential setting. By effectively cutting DLA the coalition government risks reversing this rise in independent living.

3. There is no mention in the Budget of any intention to introduce a similar approach to Attendance Allowance, which is essentially the same benefit as DLA but for over 65s. Though ECDP would oppose such a move, we do not understand why the coalition government is focusing its efforts only on disabled people of working age.

4. Although the VAT increase affects everyone equally, a further change announced by the coalition government affects how inflation is calculated on disability (and other) benefits. As a result of this change and the VAT increase, we have no doubt that disabled people will get a double whammy on their day-to-day living costs when the changes come into effect.

Overall, we are very concerned that disabled people will be worse of as a result of the introduction of medical assessments for DLA, and will do all we can to try and stop or limit their introduction.

The Guardian, Community Care and Disability Now have already picked up on ECDP’s criticisms of the proposed changes, in the following articles:

Guardian: http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2010/jun/22/budget-osborne-welfare-costs

Socity Guardian: http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/joepublic/2010/jun/23/society-daily-budget-2010

Community Care: http://www.communitycare.co.uk/Articles/2010/06/22/114776/Medical-assessments-for-DLA-claimants-39will-backfire39.htm

Disability Now: http://www.disabilitynow.org.uk/latest-news2/medical-test-for-dla

If you have any concerns about the introduction of medical tests for DLA, please let us know. Contact Faye Savage, ECDP’s Lived Experience Officer by email:  fsavage@ecdp.org.uk or by phone: 01245 241024