More Benefits Update

As promised this is the lastest I know

Fourth Independent Review of the Work Capability Assessment published


The Fourth Independent Review of the Work Capability Assessment (WCA) was published in December 2013.
The review, carried out by Dr Paul Litchfield, found that progress has been made in implementing recommendations from earlier reviews and that some notable improvements have been made to the WCA process. But Dr Litchfield recommends that DWP should:

Simplify the WCA process and improve the way people having an assessment feel they are treated;

Improve knowledge of mental health among decision makers and healthcare professionals;

Continue to streamline the decision-making process.
Minister of State for Disabled People, Mike Penning, said:
“We welcome the valuable recommendations Dr Litchfield provides in the fourth review to make the WCA fairer, more accurate and more transparent.
“We spend more than £13 billion on sickness and incapacity benefits for almost 2.5 million people of working age and we need to make sure that support goes to those who need it most.”
During the review, organisations and individuals gave their views on how the WCA is working and what further improvements they would like to see.
DWP will carefully consider Dr Litchfield’s recommendations before publishing a formal response in early 2014. DWP also intends to secure additional providers, on a regional basis, to carry out Work Capability Assessments from next summer.
As reported in the June Touchbase, DWP is already delivering the recommendations made by Professor Malcolm Harrington after the first three reviews. These include:

Improving how we communicate with and explain the WCA process to claimants;

Introducing the Quality Assessment Framework to improve WCA decisions;

Improving the way in which people who are awaiting/receiving treatment for or recovering from cancer are assessed.