ESA, DLA and PIP chaos - DWP overturning more than half of it's own decisions on MR..

jennyjenkins111

Morglin wrote: »

Thanks, Jenny. :T

After our PM's, I spoke to a couple of 'real life' ex colleagues, at the DWP, and am confident with your info, which will be most useful in my 'real life' stuff!

Won't help with the seemingly endless claim forms, (aargh!) but will help if I know what direction we are heading.

But, as it is pointless posting it on here, and I am not getting involved in pointless forum rows, it would be handy if you could PM anything else.

Cheers.

Lin

Thanks Lin I will do.

50Twuncle

jennyjenkins111 wrote: »

The reason why I had to change my name was, although the account jennyjenkins was still valid, I was not allowed to post anything I was getting stupid messages saying that I was restricted to what I could do. No reason was given. So I rejoined with another e-mail address as jennyjenkins111, I am not a troll. I spent from 4pm until 9pm on Wednesday 18/06/2014trying to answer questions. and not being able to. This account at the moment seems to be OK, I can now post and answer messages, which I couldnt on the other one. Don'task me why it was stopped because I don't know sorry for confusing you 50Twuncle

OK welcome to the fold !!

kittykat17

tomtontom wrote: »

She's not been away?

This thread gets more bewildering!

I wrote that because Lin had said yesterday that she wasn't going to be posting on this thread again, which I think is a real shame.


Su

jga1940

Morglin wrote: »

There was some problem with a PM, reporting and registration, as far as I know.

All sorted now.

Lin

Hi Lin,

I've been trying to send you a PM, but it tells me that morglin is not a valid username ?

Jim

jga1940

jennyjenkins111 wrote: »

The reason why I had to change my name was, although the account jennyjenkins was still valid, I was not allowed to post anything I was getting stupid messages saying that I was restricted to what I could do. No reason was given. So I rejoined with another e-mail address as jennyjenkins111, I am not a troll. I spent from 4pm until 9pm on Wednesday 18/06/2014trying to answer questions. and not being able to. This account at the moment seems to be OK, I can now post and answer messages, which I couldnt on the other one. Don'task me why it was stopped because I don't know sorry for confusing you 50Twuncle

Why won't you provide an answer to any of the simple questions I asked. It's no big deal asking you whether you work for the DWP that deals with appeals, or for HMCTS. I have provided evidence that I'm not a troll, but a retired WRO & former DLA Tribunal Member.

It would be quite easy for MSE to check you and JJ111 are the same person, as all internet users have a unique IP address. I could use the report feature, but have no intention of doing so, since you may be who you say you are, and as I've said previously, I'd be more than happy to post an apology.

I just want to clear this matter up, so I can continue to come back and give advice, as I still have contacts working for DWP on DLA/PIP and with HMCTS.

SailorSam

I've had an email from Paul Lewis (Moneybox).
It says these benefits and the implentation of them is one of the things they'll be discussing on his Radio 4 show tomorrow lunch time (saturday)

tomtontom

jga1940 wrote: »

Hi Lin,

I've been trying to send you a PM, but it tells me that morglin is not a valid username ?

Jim

Usernames are case sensitive - upper case M should do the trick

jga1940

Personal Independence Payments ‘Nothing Short Of A Fiasco’


The Public Accounts Select Committee (PAC) has described the implementation of the Personal Independence Payment (PIP) as ‘nothing short of a fiasco, which is pushing some of our societies poorest and most vulnerable citizens into the arms of high-cost lenders and food banks.
Personal Independence Payments are replacing Disability Living Allowance (DLA) for disabled people and those with long-term medical conditions which affect their ability to live as full and independently reasonably as possible.

As I’m a new member, I’m not allowed to post links, but reproduce what the PAC report released 20/6/2014, stated:

The damning report released today accuses the Department for Work and Pensions, presided over by the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions Iain Duncan Smith MP, of rushing through the reforms to disability benefits without fully piloting the new disabled persons benefit.

Disabled people have been left to wait more than six months for a decision on their claim and some terminally ill claimants were having to wait up to a month, despite promises from the DWP and Iain Duncan SMith that these people would be ‘fast-tracked’ through the claim system.

The committee also say that the DWP ‘misjudged the number of face-to-face that providers would need to carry out, and the time these assessments would take’. Chair of the Public Accounts Committee, Margaret Hodge MP, said that the PAC were concerned Atos, one of the private companies handed a contract by the DWP to carry out face-to-face disability assessments, had “included incorrect and potentially misleading information in its bid for the contract”.

Atos recently announced that they would be pulling out of a contract to deliver Work Capability Assessments (WCA) for the sickness benefit Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) early. Atos has been heavily criticised for its poor performance and accuracy in delivering WCAs.

With this in mind the Public Accounts Committee say the DWP ‘ignored the bidders previous record in providing assessments for Employment Support Allowance, when deciding to whom to award contracts’ The committee also say that the DWP ‘misjudged the number of face-to-face that providers would need to carry out, and the time these assessments would take’.

Chair of the Public Accounts Committee, Margaret Hodge MP, said that the PAC were concerned Atos, one of the private companies handed a contract by the DWP to carry out face-to-face disability assessments, had “included incorrect and potentially misleading information in its bid for the contract”.

“The implementation of Personal Independence Payment has been nothing short of a fiasco. The Department of Work and Pensions has let down some of the most vulnerable people in our society, many of whom have had to wait more than 6 months for their claims to be decided.

“The Department’s failure to pilot the scheme meant that the most basic assumptions, such as how long assessments would take and how many would require face-to-face consultations, had not been fully tested and proved to be wrong. This resulted in significant delays, a backlog of claims and unnecessary distress for claimants who have been unable to access the support they need to live, and in some cases work, independently.

“The implementation of Personal Independence Payment has been nothing short of a fiasco. The Department of Work and Pensions has let down some of the most vulnerable people in our society, many of whom have had to wait more than 6 months for their claims to be decided.

The Department’s failure to pilot the scheme meant that the most basic assumptions, such as how long assessments would take and how many would require face-to-face consultations, had not been fully tested and proved to be wrong. This resulted in significant delays, a backlog of claims and unnecessary distress for claimants who have been unable to access the support they need to live, and in some cases work, independentl“The personal stories we heard were shocking.

We heard evidence of a claimant requiring hospital intervention as a result of the stress caused by the delays suffered, and another claimant who was unable to afford the specific diet required for diabetes and gastric problems while waiting for a decision.

“By October 2013, the Department had only made 16% of the decisions it had expected to have made by that time. What was particularly alarming was that terminally ill people were having to wait on average 28 days for a decision, 180% longer than expected.

Some claimants have been forced to turn to food banks, loans and charitable donations to support the extra costs of living associated with their disability.

“The standard of service provided by the Department and its contractors has been unacceptable. Claimants have experienced difficulties in arranging appointments – and assessors have cancelled home visits at the last minute and have failed to turn up when claimants have travelled to assessment centres. Four in ten claimants in Atos areas have had to travel over an hour to be assessed, a far cry from its promise that between 75% and 90% of claimants would travel less than 30 minutes to an assessment centre.

“We are concerned that Atos appears to have included incorrect and potentially misleading information in its bid for the contract. Atos stated in its tender document that it had “contractual agreements” in place with a national network of 56 NHS hospitals, 25 private hospitals and over 650 physiotherapy practices to provide assessments. This turned out not to be true.

“The Department should challenge claims made in bids, so that it can demonstrate it has not relied on inaccurate or exaggerated information when awarding contracts.“We would have expected the Department to have exercised particular caution in letting this contact, given the poor performance of Atos on Work Capability Assessments. The Department must take into account previous performance on similar work when running a procurement.

“The process has also proved to be inaccessible and cumbersome for claimants, increasing the risk of delays and incorrect decisions.
“The Department urgently needs to get this Scheme up to scratch and make sure some of our most vulnerable citizens are protected when going through this process. What we’ve witnessed is a rushed, wholly unacceptable job, and the Department should take a long hard look at what went wrong.” Kate Green MP, Labour’s Shadow Disability Minister, commenting on the PAC report on Personal Independence Payments, said:
“This scathing criticism of the government’s chaotic handling of PIP leaves serious questions about competence at Department for Work and Pensions. Thousands of disabled people are waiting months and months for essential help which means taxpayers are facing a huge bill to deal with the enormous backlog of Personal Independence Payment assessments. If they continue at the current rate, the backlog could take up to 42 years to clear. “David Cameron must urgently get a grip of this chaotic department to avoid Personal Independence Payments going the same way as the crisis-hit Universal Credit programme.”

The Chief Executive of the Citizens Advice Bureau, Gillian Guy said that the Government’s disability benefits need “root and branch reform”, saying that the PIP fiasco comes off the back of confirmation that 700,000 sick and disabled benefit claimants are still waiting to be assessed for ESA after Atos announced they would be withdrawing from the contract.

Gillian Guy said: !“The Government’s disability reforms are not fit for purpose. At Citizens Advice we’ve dealt with more than 100,000 problems with Personal Independence Payment since it was introduced last year. The problems with PIP are the tip of the iceberg, as Employment Support Allowance for sick and disabled people is now the single biggest issue which our clients need help with.

“No one knows when a major accident or illness could turn their life upside down. It’s vital that ministers sort out the flaws in the safety net there to protect people with health problems. Delays of six months or more, wrong assessments by Government contractors and charges for medical evidence to appeal against decisions are major obstacles to sick and disabled people getting the vital help that they need.

“More than 5,000 people have signed our petition to make ESA fit for work and with Atos withdrawing from its Government contract, ministers now have the chance to carry out root and branch reform and get the system sorted.”

The Government’s disability benefit reforms were also criticised by the Trade Union Congress (TUC). Commenting on the delays to Personal Independence Payments, TUC General Secretary Frances O’Grady said:

“The government’s disastrous shake-up of the welfare system continues apace.

“Today’s revelations about the Personal Independence Payment and the Employment Support Allowance smack not only of incompetence but of a systematic attempt to remove the safety net people depend upon when they fall on hard times.

“It is disgraceful that terminally ill and disabled people are being made to wait for months for vital benefits. Taking money away from the most vulnerable in our society is not the way to make work pay.

“The government’s welfare reforms are unravelling, with costs shooting through the roof and millions being made to suffer.”

An Atos Healthcare spokeswoman said:

:We completely refute any allegation of misinformation during the procurement process for Personal Independence Payment.

“The Department [DWP] made clear that they were not misinformed during the tender process, that at the point of ‘go live’ they knew our capacity, our partners and the number of centres we would be using.”

So there you have it .

Acknowledgements to John Pring, Chief Officer, Disability News Service.

50Twuncle

jga1940 wrote: »

“The standard of service provided by the Department and its contractors has been unacceptable. Claimants have experienced difficulties in arranging appointments – and assessors have cancelled home visits at the last minute and have failed to turn up when claimants have travelled to assessment centres. Four in ten claimants in Atos areas have had to travel over an hour to be assessed, a far cry from its promise that between 75% and 90% of claimants would travel less than 30 minutes to an assessment centre.

I had forgotten that when I was on ESA first time - 5 years ago - I was required to attend an assessment centre in a city almost two hours drive away, and I don't live anywhere "back of beyond" and after the journey - I sat in the cold dank "detention centre" for another 2 hours before being called in - the ATOS "doctor" who saw me, asked me what I was doing there, because he didn't need to see me - I was automatically put in the WRAG group and was sent home.....
Some things never change

deeplyblue

jga1940 wrote: »

The reason that IDS refused to move to another Department, and Cameron let him get away with it rather than sacking him is because IDS knows something about Cameron that we don't.

This is an assertion widely made on the Internet, but no one has ever come up with either proof or backup from someone who might be in a position to know. In other words it's just speculation.

You add this to detailed comment on something where you are an expert, which makes it seem that your other assertions have equal status.

I have another suggestion, which I think much more likely. I think that IDS said that, if removed from the DWP, he would resign from the cabinet. Than Cameron would have another influential critic (remember, enough of the people still there voted to make him party leader) on the back benches. He could make all sorts of mischief, without knowing some disgraceful secret about Cameron - starting with stirring over Europe and going on to undermining whatever his successor at the DWP tried to do.

He may be a rotten minister and someone whose dishonest and disloyal behaviour contradicts his chosen persona as "an officer and gentleman", but DC does not dare make him an enemy, because he might be rather better at that.