Personal Independence Payment: Medical Examinations

(asked on 22nd June 2022) - View Source

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps her Department is taking to reduce the waiting times for personal independent payment medical assessments.


Answered by
Chloe Smith Portrait
Chloe Smith
This question was answered on 27th June 2022

The Personal Independence Payment (PIP) assessment is not a medical assessment as it does not require the Health Professional (HP) to diagnose a condition and to recommend treatment options. Instead, it requires the HP to look at the impact the condition or impairment has on an individuals’ daily life.

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) is committed to assessing people as quickly as possible, in order that they receive the benefit and support they are entitled to in a timely manner. DWP has worked continuously with providers to drive improvements, to develop the PIP assessment process and how these impact on overall processing times. Telephone assessments were introduced at pace in 2020, when face-to-face assessments were suspended due to the pandemic, with video assessments introduced shortly after. These continue to be delivered alongside face-to-face and paper-based assessments.

Reducing processing times is a priority for the department, however under business-as-usual conditions, there may be referrals that take longer to progress. For example, an interpreter is required in a less common language, or a home visit to be arranged in a remote location. In addition, some claimants also fail to attend assessments for numerous reasons, which requires the department to understand and decide if a new referral to the assessment provider is needed. In these circumstances the overall time from claim registration to the claimant having an assessment may be extended.

The department has recently reiterated its commitment to continuously improve our services in ‘Shaping Future Support: The Health and Disability Green Paper’.

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