People with severe, degenerative medical conditions such as Parkinson’s and multiple sclerosis will no longer have to undergo regular tests to prove they remain eligible for disability benefits, ministers have confirmed.
The change means that people awarded the highest level of personal independence payment (Pip) for conditions that are not expected to improve will be subjected to “light touch†reassessment just once a decade.
Charities and campaigners welcomed the decision as a significant change for people with chronic conditions who are forced to go through the notoriously stressful Pip reassessment process as often as every two years.
But they warned that the change – which mirrors those made last year to employment and support allowance “fit for work†tests – was piecemeal and more fundamental reforms were needed to the inherently flawedPip assessment process.
Nearest tube: Elephant & Castle underground station (Northern and Bakerloo lines).
Nearest Railway Station: Elephant & Castle
Buses from Elephant and Castle: ask bus driver for Burgess Park. Bus numbers: 12, 171, 148, 176, 68, 484, 42, 40, 45