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Atos Medicals - Questions, Answers and Support

that's still part of the same award. It only ends if you withdraw the claim or you no longer have entitlement to IR-ESA and the JC+ terminates your claim. If you claim IR-ESA, Income based JSA or IS with no gap in between it continues to be ingored for the whole period of this claim
 
Going back to the EDM we've been asking our MPs to sign - this is the reply received by someone on another website. To be honest, I didn't read all of it. You'll probably recognise the MP's name.

Thank you for your email about the Work Capability Assessment (WCA) and EDM 295. I am sorry to disappoint you but I sign very few EDMs.

I am aware of the difficulties that people have been facing and realise that you are troubled by the difficulties with the WCA. It is hard enough to deal with a disability or illness such as ME, without having to worry about undergoing an assessment and it is important that this process is improved.

However, I can assure you Government is working hard to get the WCA right. It inherited an assessment from the previous Government that was flawed and is continuously improving the medical test to ensure it is as fair and effective as possible.

The Government is clear that the WCA is about helping people who can work get back into employment and that disabled people who need unconditional support will continue to receive it. It is vital that we support people who were written off to a lifetime on benefits into jobs and the new Work Programme will help them overcome the barriers they face to get back into work.

I know that the Government wants to ensure that the WCA is as fair and accurate as possible. Since coming to power, the Government has recognised that the WCA was not as robust as it should be and has set about introducing a number of improvements to the assessment process. Professor Malcolm Harrington, a leading occupational health expert, has been asked to independently review the WCA and has so far completed two annual reviews.

In both cases, the Government has accepted all of Professor Harrington's recommendations. It is also worth noting that Professor Harrington commented that since his first review of the assessment in 2010, "the process had noticeably changed for the better".

The figure of 40 per cent of appeals proving successful is based on all the assessments since 2008 when the WCA was first introduced. Although it can be difficult to provide an accurate figure because of course the most recent data on appeals may still be going through the appeals process itself. Data for the latest quarter (December 2010 Feb 2011) suggest that the number of decisions successfully overturned is currently at 32 per cent and is continuing to improve as the WCA becomes more robust as a result of the changes that the Government has made.

I think it is imperative the Government presses ahead with this current programme of reform to ensure that WCA is fit for purpose and commands the trust and respect of claimants, medical professionals and the taxpayer alike. Professor Harrington continues to lead the review process and submits annual reports to the Government on the WCA.

The Government continues to engage with a variety of representative groups that act on behalf of disabled people who suffer from a range of different conditions. By working with these groups and Atos, I believe the assessment process is improving and I hope that the process continues on this upward trajectory.

Thank you again for taking the time to contact me.

Yours sincerely

LIAM FOX
Parliamentary Office of the Rt Hon Dr Liam Fox MP


Can't remember if this link has been posted here -

http://www.gopetition.com/petitions...-of-no-confidence-in-the-uk-coalit.html#fbbox
 
culder said:
Going back to the EDM we've been asking our MPs to sign - this is the reply received by someone on another website. To be honest, I didn't read all of it. You'll probably recognise the MPs name.

Thank you for your email about the Work Capability Assessment (WCA) and EDM 295. I am sorry to disappoint you but I sign very few EDMs.

I am aware of the difficulties that people have been facing and realise that you are troubled by the difficulties with the WCA. It is hard enough to deal with a disability or illness such as ME, without having to worry about undergoing an assessment and it is important that this process is improved.

However, I can assure you Government is working hard to get the WCA right. It inherited an assessment from the previous Government that was flawed and is continuously improving the medical test to ensure it is as fair and effective as possible.

The Government is clear that the WCA is about helping people who can work get back into employment and that disabled people who need unconditional support will continue to receive it. It is vital that we support people who were written off to a lifetime on benefits into jobs and the new Work Programme will help them overcome the barriers they face to get back into work.

I know that the Government wants to ensure that the WCA is as fair and accurate as possible. Since coming to power, the Government has recognised that the WCA was not as robust as it should be and has set about introducing a number of improvements to the assessment process. Professor Malcolm Harrington, a leading occupational health expert, has been asked to independently review the WCA and has so far completed two annual reviews.

In both cases, the Government has accepted all of Professor Harrington's recommendations. It is also worth noting that Professor Harrington commented that since his first review of the assessment in 2010, "the process had noticeably changed for the better".

The figure of 40 per cent of appeals proving successful is based on all the assessments since 2008 when the WCA was first introduced. Although it can be difficult to provide an accurate figure because of course the most recent data on appeals may still be going through the appeals process itself. Data for the latest quarter (December 2010 Feb 2011) suggest that the number of decisions successfully overturned is currently at 32 per cent and is continuing to improve as the WCA becomes more robust as a result of the changes that the Government has made.

I think it is imperative the Government presses ahead with this current programme of reform to ensure that WCA is fit for purpose and commands the trust and respect of claimants, medical professionals and the taxpayer alike. Professor Harrington continues to lead the review process and submits annual reports to the Government on the WCA.

The Government continues to engage with a variety of representative groups that act on behalf of disabled people who suffer from a range of different conditions. By working with these groups and Atos, I believe the assessment process is improving and I hope that the process continues on this upward trajectory.

Thank you again for taking the time to contact me.

Yours sincerely

LIAM FOX
Parliamentary Office of the Rt Hon Dr Liam Fox MP


Can't remember if this link has been posted here -

http://www.gopetition.com/petitions...-of-no-confidence-in-the-uk-coalit.html#fbbox
Click to expand...

:mad::mad::mad::mad::mad:

That reply made me very angry - patronising cock blaming labour. 'I don't sign EDMs'. Knobend.
 
culder said:
It's really bad, isn't it?

Don't forget to sign the petition, though!
Click to expand...
Done.

Which is more than my sodding MP has done with the Early Day Motion. Given that other Glasgow MPs have signed it, I'd really like to know why she doesn't feel the need to. She hasn't even acknowledged my email.
 
That's really annoying. Have you tried e-mailing her again? Mine was away when I first tried, but after my 2nd e-mail he signed it.
 
4.2.5 Information brought by the claimant to the assessment
Click to expand...
​
At times the claimant may bring additional evidence with them to the assessment. The HCP must read this evidence. You should ask the claimant whether they wish to have the letter included in their file in support of their claim. If so, it should be photocopied, a note made in the file of the source and date of receipt of the document, and the original returned to the claimant. If no copying facilities are available, offer to have the copying done at the Medical Services Centre and to have the original returned by post. If this is unacceptable to the claimant, you should explain that it cannot be used in support of the claim as it will not be seen and considered by the Decision Maker.​
Click to expand...
The above is taken from this:​
 
equationgirl said:
Make copies and take them to an assessment yourself. No way would I trust them to take a document back somewhere, copy it and return it to me, going on past reported behaviour.
Click to expand...

Well of course. The important point in the above is: "The HCP must read this [additional] evidence" with regards to the assessment taking place at that time.

My emphasis.
 
equationgirl said:
Make copies and take them to an assessment yourself. No way would I trust them to take a document back somewhere, copy it and return it to me, going on past reported behaviour.
Click to expand...

Exactly: I read the above instruction as a heavy hint: "Do not have a photocopier".
 
Hurrah! Back-pay and heating allowances received and banked.

Meanwhile, my MP has replied to me.

Although he's not signing McDonalds EDM, he's passed on my concerns, which he's also concerned about, to Chris Grayling asking for a response to the suicides and deaths of those found "fit for work" after WCA's by Atos Healthcare.

Keep the pressure on.

Update.

Edit: Turns out my MP thinks it is appropriate to sign the EDM in one of the letters I've received, but has said he has decided not to sign it in a letter he has sent to the Minister, Chris Grayling? :confused:
 
audiotech said:
Hurrah! Back-pay and heating allowances received and banked.

Meanwhile, my MP has replied to me.

Although he's not signing McDonalds EDM, he's passed on my concerns, which he's also concerned about, to Chris Grayling asking for a response to the suicides and deaths of those found "fit for work" after WCA's by Atos Healthcare.

Keep the pressure on.
Click to expand...

Heating allowance? :confused:
 
Oh yes, I got one of those, too. From the week when my IB was stopped, so I couldn't have it at the time. Well, it was a Cold Weather Payment (£25), not the Winter Fuel Allowance.
 
Turns out my MP thinks it "appropriate to sign the EDM" in one of the letters I've received, but has said he has decided not to sign it in a copy of the letter he has sent to the Minister, Chris Grayling? :confused:
 
audiotech said:
Turns out my MP thinks it "appropriate to sign the EDM" in one of the letters I've received, but has said he has decided not to sign it in a copy of the letter he has sent to the Minister, Chris Grayling? :confused:
Click to expand...
It's called telling you a big porky-pie to keep you quiet. Although he's also assuming you're not checking the list of people who have signed.:facepalm:
 
News article in the Guardian about recording of assessments:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2012/jul/20/fitness-for-work-tests-technical-chaos

The highlight - Atos are blatantly lying on their website in light of Chris Grayling's statement last week about claimants being offered other dates.

The DWP does a bit of bleating at the end, trying to say that only a small number of machines are broken, it's not true, they're fixing them and buying more. Honest.

Also:
'The shadow employment minister, Stephen Timms, who has written to Grayling to highlight his concerns about the lack of recording equipment, said: "I find it hard to believe that a company with a multimillion pound government contract is incapable of obtaining and operating sufficient recording devices."'
 
equationgirl said:
I can't find the original link BUT I stumbled across the following one:
http://www.whywaitforever.com/dwpatosmedicalreport.html

Read the section on Breach of Contract - given the complexities of his condition, he MUST be seen by a practitioner experience in neuro disorders in order to receive a fair assessment.
Click to expand...
Minnie - this is the link I found earlier that states he must be seen by a practitioner experienced in neuro disorders in order to receive a fair assessment. You might want to print it out and take it with you to any assessment.
 
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