Asked by: Alexander Stafford (Conservative - Rother Valley)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of the training provided to Personal Independence Payment assessors on helping claimants with Parkinson's disease.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
Health Professionals (HPs) receive comprehensive training in assessing functional capability relating to physical and mental health conditions, including Parkinson's disease. Condition specific information on Parkinson’s disease is also available to HPs, which has been quality assured by relevant external experts.
Assessment quality is a priority for both providers and the department. The department works extensively with providers to make improvements to guidance, training, and audit procedures, to ensure a high standard is always maintained. The independent audit function continually monitors performance and provides feedback to providers.
Asked by: Alexander Stafford (Conservative - Rother Valley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to support NHS Trusts to ensure that people with Parkinson's receive their medication on time in hospital settings in England.
Answered by Will Quince
Hospital providers are responsible for ensuring that patients within hospital settings, including those with Parkinson’s disease, receive the appropriate medication on time.
NHS England has published a RightCare toolkit which aims to address challenges in providing services for those with progressive neurological conditions, including Parkinson’s disease. The toolkit provides advice on medicine optimisation, highlighting the importance of timely administration of specific drugs, such as Levodopa, in acute and community health settings.
Asked by: Alexander Stafford (Conservative - Rother Valley)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department is taking steps to ensure that NHS Trusts in England have a self-administration policy that enables people with Parkinson’s to (a) take their own time-critical Parkinson's medication in hospital should they wish to and (b) be assessed as safe to do so.
Answered by Will Quince
Hospital providers are responsible for ensuring that patients within hospital settings, including those with Parkinson’s disease, receive the appropriate medication on time.
NHS England has published a RightCare toolkit which aims to address challenges in providing services for those with progressive neurological conditions, including Parkinson’s disease. The toolkit provides advice on medicine optimisation, highlighting the importance of timely administration of specific drugs, such as Levodopa, in acute and community health settings.
Asked by: Navendu Mishra (Labour - Stockport)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the average wait time is for patients to see a specialist related to Parkinson's disease in (a) Stockport constituency, (b) Stockport borough and (c) Greater Manchester
Answered by Helen Whately - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The information requested is not held centrally.
Asked by: Taiwo Owatemi (Labour - Coventry North West)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking to support people with (a) Parkinson's and (b) other long-term conditions to cover everyday expenses.
Answered by Laura Trott - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
HM Treasury ministers have regular discussions with Department for Health and Social Care ministers on a range of issues, including meetings between the Chancellor and the Secretary of State
The Government delivers a wide range of support to help those with disabilities and long-term health conditions, such as Parkinson’s. If individuals incur extra costs whilst performing tasks associated with daily living, then they may qualify for disability benefits such as Personal Independence Payment (PIP) and Attendance Allowance (AA). This extra support can be worth over £8,900 per year and is due to increase from April by 6.7%. Depending on their needs, additional support for those with Parkinson’s may be available via local authorities who deliver adult social care services.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking to support people with (a) Parkinson's and (b) other long-term conditions to cover everyday expenses.
Answered by Laura Trott - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
HM Treasury ministers have regular discussions with Department for Health and Social Care ministers on a range of issues, including meetings between the Chancellor and the Secretary of State
The Government delivers a wide range of support to help those with disabilities and long-term health conditions, such as Parkinson’s. If individuals incur extra costs whilst performing tasks associated with daily living, then they may qualify for disability benefits such as Personal Independence Payment (PIP) and Attendance Allowance (AA). This extra support can be worth over £8,900 per year and is due to increase from April by 6.7%. Depending on their needs, additional support for those with Parkinson’s may be available via local authorities who deliver adult social care services.
Asked by: Alexander Stafford (Conservative - Rother Valley)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he has made an estimate of the underpayment rate of personal independence payments for people with Parkinson's disease.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
No such estimate has been made. Personal Independence Payment (PIP) is intended to act as a contribution towards the extra costs that arise from needs related to a long-term health condition or disability. Entitlement is assessed based on the needs arising from the health condition or disability, rather than a diagnosis of the health condition or disability itself. Any information that a claimant wishes to submit in support of their claim can be considered where that would help establish the needs arising.
Asked by: Alexander Stafford (Conservative - Rother Valley)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of Personal Independent Payment assessors using informal observations for claimants with Parkinson's disease on the number of mandatory reconsiderations.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
We have not made such an assessment.
Entitlement to PIP is assessed based on the needs arising from a long-term health condition or disability, not the health condition or disability itself. The PIP Assessment Guide, used by health professionals who conduct PIP assessments, sets out how informal observations of functional limitations should be used.
Informal observations can be a way to reveal abilities and limitations not mentioned in the claimant questionnaire. However, they are only part of the suite of evidence considered by health professionals during an assessment. They must also consider the invisible nature of some symptoms such as fatigue and pain, which may be less easy to identify through observation.
Informal observations included in a health professional’s advice to DWP are not viewed in isolation, they are considered alongside all other available evidence to determine PIP entitlement.
Asked by: Peter Dowd (Labour - Bootle)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will take steps to review planned changes to the Work Capability Assessment to reflect the impact on people with (a) Parkinson's and (b) other long-term conditions.
Answered by Mims Davies - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Work Capability Assessment (WCA) assesses individuals against a set of descriptors to determine how their health condition or disability affects their ability to work. The WCA takes into account the functional effects of fluctuating and degenerative conditions such as Parkinson’s. A key principle is that the WCA considers the impact that a person’s disability or health condition has on them, not the condition itself.
Claimants with the most severe health conditions and disabilities whose condition is unlikely to ever improve are no longer routinely reassessed.
From 2025, we are reforming the WCA to reflect new flexibilities in the labour market and greater employment opportunities for disabled people and people with health conditions, whilst maintaining protections for those with the most significant conditions. Claimants who currently have no work-related requirements, except in some very limited circumstances, will not be reassessed or lose benefit because of these changes.
When making decisions on changes to the WCA, we carefully considered over 1300 consultation responses, including from disabled people, people with health conditions, and the organisations that represent and support them. We also engaged directly with clinical experts, employer groups and disability organisations across the country.
With these changes to the WCA criteria, 371,000 fewer people will be assessed as having limited capability for work and work-related activity by 2028-29 and will receive personalised support to help them move closer to employment. A further 29,000 individuals will be found fit for work by 2028-29 and will receive more intensive support to search for and secure work than would be the case under the current WCA rules. These figures are not based on specific conditions. This is because the WCA considers the impact that a person’s disability or health condition has on their ability to work, not the condition itself.
The department routinely engages with a wide range of organisations that represent and support disabled people and people with health conditions, including people living with Parkinson’s disease.
Written Evidence May. 24 2023
Inquiry: Cost of living support paymentsFound: CLP0022 - Cost of living support payments Parkinson's UK Written Evidence