Changes to PIP

[Orangesandlemons77]

It looks like to qualify for PIP people will need 4 points in one area, see here from the Times
"In future, ministers will require applicants to score at least four points on at least one activity to qualify"
Not sure if this means in each section (care, mobility)

This would exclude quite a few people I think

For the millionth time, PIP is not a means-tested benefit. One can work and still receive PIP as it is based on needs, not income so getting more people back into work is unlikely to have much effect on PIP claims.

Yes, and even when you do have evidence it doesn’t mean you are believed.
I need supervision to make sure I don’t choke when I eat, this was supported with medical evidence and a detailed letter from my partner. I scored 0 for that whole section, nevertheless.

PIP is a ridiculously difficult benefit to qualify for - I’m doubly incontinent and need supervision with eating, help with dressing and washing myself, but I only qualify for the lower rate care band.

Despite all this I work - all PIP does is compensate me for part of the cost of heating, washing, food, mobility aids, running an adapted vehicle all the other costs of disability. I don’t qualify for anything else and to be honest I’m disgusted with Labour for the way they are behaving. They have stopped being the party that protect those of us in society who live with disadvantages.

I really hope it has a complete revamp. Those that can't work should still rightly receive, but those that are just anxious etc or scamming the system really do need to have the benefit stopped as soon as possible.
It's such a drain on resource.

People with even severe MH restrictions won't qualify.. because anything beyond prompting is more for physically impaired people, like 'assistance' to wash and bathe, etc. the only descriptor they may qualify for is activity 11 (going out) under severe physiological distress. Which would be standard mobility, around £30 per week. (I think??)
The government really need to look again at this.

@Whammyyammy stop staying "scamming" no one is scamming the system. A tiny minority commit fraud.

I think prompting scores 4 points on some descriptors?

So which bits do they need to score 4 in?

I really do doubt that it's tiny. The number of people SCAMMING the tax payers will be unknown, otherwise it would be simple to just stop these fraudulent claims.
However, the government obviously agrees and is reviewing the policy.
Here's hoping for a reduction in claims.

I think ( if I have understood correctly) and obviously we haven't had any concrete confirmation yet that to get a PIP award people will need to score 4 points in one category/ descriptor, and then obviously the other four or eight points across the other descriptors.

What do you mean "could work but don't"? 48% of adults on pip already do work. Its an in work benefit

My daughter has 4x4 and a 12. She is autistic and adhd and several other conditions but she has been battling Anorexia for quite some time and absolutely needs prompting to eat. It’s crucial. Do you think she’ll be ok?

I've been looking at the stats and nearly half a million people receive PIP primarily for arthritis.

I cannot stress enough how crap the Rheumatology Dept at my local (major) hospital is. It was my Dermatology Consultant who finally prescribed me biologic biosimilar injections, which have stopped my condition deteriorating further. Rheumatology wouldn't prescribe because its criteria are much stricter owing to its 'budget matrix'.

The damage is done to me now - my joints are fucked. But the biologic biosimilars would always have been cheaper than full PIP (Enhanced x2), which I am now awarded indefinitely. Oh and guess what - I don't qualify for NHS joint replacements.

Official recorded PIP fraud rate is miniscule 0.1%.

But you carry on with your SCAM nonsense and hoping to see disabled people suffer. Better hope you never have an accident or develop a serious illness.

The fraud rate for PIP is O%, and that's the government's own figures.

The government aren't cracking down on benefit fraud, they are trying to limit the amount of people that qualify for help.

Current sickness levels are in no small part due to an overstretched NHS, austerity, a pandemic and a cost of living crisis. But instead of acknowledging that and dealing with the causes, they are trying to redefine disability to exclude people from support that they rely on to have fulfilling lives.

It's sort of the same principle as a hospital refusing to diagnose an illness because they don't want to fund the treatment. Or legalising crimes to save the justice system the cost of punishment.

Any of the descriptors in the Daily Living section, apparently. (According to the Times article.)

The bigoted will argue against it being accurate. They always do.

I am sorry you are suffering. All the scratching of government heads about why PIP claims have rocketed. It is so obvious. People aren't getting the help they need from the NHS at the time they need it, so get sicker and sicker. Often to the point their health will never recover as it is too late for treatment to work by the time it is available. If it ever is.

All her 4s and 12 are in that.

They seem to be back tracking massively.

I'm not sure how the UC rates will pan out, but for PIP, I don't have one single client who scores 2 in 4 categories, so not one of the people I personally help (about 60 over 3-6 months) will lose their pip. They ALL get at least 4 in one category.

With the UC rates, what I've seen over the last 18 months or so is a very big effort by the job centre to get the lower rate people either in training programmes or qualified for the higher rate. (I often work with ss, DWP and housing officers)

I work for a charity and i mainly help disabled people with their benefit claims.

This has been on the cards for quite a long time, and I'm hoping it won't be as bad as we originally thought around 2 years ago. I expect the press won't represent it as that though.

I know it's really hard if you're a claimant, but I honestly don't think anyone has to worry. They're going to use the figures from the last few years to show that what they're implementing is succeeding, but it's already, realistically being done.

They and the Tories were happy enough to stress how ill and vulnerable disabled people were beween 2020 and 2022 when they were using them as tools to emotionally blackmail others to follow Covid rules and restrictions.

They were fucking sick and disabled enough THEN when it suited both main parties.

I agree with all that my dd got pulled in to be assessed for the higher rate of UC. We didn’t approach them.

That's what been happening with the people who I work with too, or it's the DWP who have actively asked for an assessment. And it's always gone to higher care rate.

Obviously no-one here can give you a definitive answer, @SqueakyC13an, but I'd say you shouldn't be worrying

It also affects those of us with physical disabilities. I for example score 2 points on getting dressed because I need help with buttons and zips, checking whether my clothes are clean, suitable for the weather, etc

I only scored 2 maximum for the descriptions. But having gone through the criteria recently I should get 4 points on at least 2 descriptions

The most reliable figures show that fraud accounts for less than 1% of overpayments. Fraud is not an issue with PIP. It is incredibly hard to get.