People are ‘set up to fail’ by target-driven disability benefits system

Article in the Big Issue, with comment from Disability Rights UK and Z2K:

Disabled people are “set up to fail” by a “soul-destroying” disability benefits system which is target-driven and designed “to catch people out”, according to former disability assessors who have spoken exclusively to The Big Issue.

The trained healthcare professionals claimed there is pressure to “ramp up numbers” with little empathy for vulnerable claimants, leading to people refused support or facing a distressing appeals process. One claimant said it drove him to “severe psychological distress to the point of being suicidal”.

“It is run as a business,” one former assessor told The Big Issue. “It is not run to help people. As long as it’s run like that, nothing will change. It will remain target-driven. It will remain profit-based. It is not putting the best interest of the people using the system at its heart.”

More: Disabled people are ‘set up to fail’ by the DWP in target-driven disability benefits system, whistleblowers reveal

Same old stock phrases from the DWP and the assessment companies

As an aside its worthy of note that the non specialist assessors are paid roughly the same as a Band 6 nurse in Critical Care

Seems that the goverment value health professionals carrying out tick box asessments more than they do those doing life saving work in the NHS

There have been a few appearances of health assessors doing AMAs (Ask Me Anything) on Reddit. Bit of guesswork as to their veracity, but you can pick out some interesting bits here and there.

For example: https://www.reddit.com/r/DWPhelp/comments/z69g88/im_a_pip_da_ask_me_almost_anything/

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Also agoraphobia is the one condition that is despised by all assessors everywhere. We believe you when you say you have it but the DWP is a massive arse about it. Technically it’s the one condition that warrants an 11B as you likely do have overwhelming psychological distress when made to go out. But the DWP has decreed that nobody is allowed to be scored as an 11B it’s just there because nobody can be bothered to amend the activity. Next choice then is 11E which scores way more anyway but we arent meant to use that either and we need to seek advice from a special support line if we want to and you having a diagnosis is a requirement usually.
“

I wonder about DWP “decreeing” anything, but interesting indication that there might be triggers for needing a second opinion just because a certain descriptor might apply.