Written Answers Nos. 106-113
106. Deputy James Bannon asked the Minister for Social Protection the position regarding a disability pension claim in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Westmeath; when payment will issue; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [48811/12]
Amharc ar fhreagraInvalidity pension is a payment for people who are permanently incapable of work because of illness or incapacity and who satisfy the contribution conditions.
This Department received a claim for invalidity pension for the person concerned on 24 May 2011. The medical evidence provided by the claimant in support of his claim was examined by a medical assessor who was of the opinion that the person concerned is not eligible for invalidity pension as he does not satisfy the medical criteria. The application for invalidity pension was, accordingly, disallowed by a deciding officer. The applicant was notified of this decision and the reason for it on 27 July 2012.
The person concerned subsequently submitted further medical evidence in support of his claim. This evidence has been forwarded to a different medical assessor for evaluation. On receipt, a deciding officer will review the application and the person concerned will be notified of the outcome.
107. Deputy John Halligan asked the Minister for Social Protection the reason behind the decision to allocate further staff resources to new applications for carer's allowance in an effort reduce processing times while old applications, that is, those received prior to a certain date are still being subjected to delays, some of which have already been waiting over a year for a decision; her vies on whether it would have been more prudent to allocate the extra staff to clear the backlog while still dealing with newer applications at a speedier pace; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [48842/12]
Amharc ar fhreagraI acknowledge that the time taken to process carer’s allowance claims at present is not satisfactory but I am satisfied that the Department is taking appropriate action to resolve the situation.
Carer’s allowance section has recently completed a major service delivery modernisation project to improve the efficiency with which it processes applications from clients for carer’s allowance. The project involved the development of IT functionality and associated business process re-organisation. Full deployment of the new system for Carer’s Allowance was completed in June 2012.
Following the completion of the modernisation project, an in-depth business process improvement (BPI) project was completed for the carer’s allowance scheme. This project focused on optimising output and customer service and the reduction of backlogs. The first step in the elimination of the backlog is to ensure that there is sufficient capacity to deal with new work as it arrives. The outcome of the review is the division of work into two streams. One concentrates on dealing with new claim intake and processes these without delay and the other on the backlog which is ring-fenced with a clear and targeted plan for its elimination. Additional resources have been added to the backlog clearance team. Implementation of the plan commenced on Monday 3 September and will be closely monitored and managed to ensure it achieves its objectives. A noted increase in the number of claims processed was achieved in September and October, where claims processed substantially exceeded claim intake, and this increase continues into November. However, it will take a number of months before the backlog is reduced to an acceptable level. The allocation of available resources to this task continues to be monitored.
109. Deputy Patrick O'Donovan asked the Minister for Social Protection the position regarding a disability allowance appeal in respect of a person (details supplied) in County Donegal; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [48868/12]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that an appeal by the person concerned was registered in that office on 24th August 2012. It is a statutory requirement of the appeals process that the relevant departmental papers and comments by the Deciding Officer on the grounds of appeal be sought. When received, the case in question will be referred to an Appeals Officer who will make a summary decision on the appeal based on documentary evidence presented or, if required, hold an oral hearing.
The Social Welfare Appeals Office functions independently of the Minister for Social Protection and of the Department and is responsible for determining appeals against decisions on social welfare entitlements.
110. Deputy Seán Kenny asked the Minister for Social Protection if she will provide a detailed breakdown of the way her Department came to the conclusion that an overpayment of over €15,000 was paid to a person (details supplied) in Dublin 13. [48869/12]
Amharc ar fhreagraEvidence became available to the Department to indicate that the person in question was not providing full time care and attention for the caree. Following an investigation of the evidence and all the circumstances, it was decided that the person in question was not entitled to carer’s allowance for the period between 3rd September 2009 and 7th December 2011. This decision creates an overpayment of €15,792.50. This sum is recoverable by the Department. The person in question was notified of this decision on 16th January 2012.
The table outlines a breakdown of this overpayment.
|
Social Welfare Scheme |
Date from |
Date to |
Payment received |
Weekly overpayment |
Number of Weeks |
Total Overpayment |
|
Carer’s Allowance |
03/09/2009 |
06/01/2010 |
€110.25 |
€110.25 |
18 |
€1,984.50 |
|
Carer’s Allowance |
07/01/2010 |
05/01/2011 |
€106.00 |
€106.00 |
52 |
€5,512.00 |
|
Carer’s Allowance |
06/01/2011 |
07/12/2011 |
€102.00 |
€102.00 |
48 |
€4,896.00 |
|
Respite Care Grant |
03/06/2010 |
09/06/2010 |
€1,700.00 |
€1,700.00 |
1 |
€1,700.00 |
|
Respite Care Grant |
02/06/2011 |
08/06/2011 |
€1,700.00 |
€1,700.00 |
1 |
€1,700.00 |
|
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
€15,792.00 |
112. Deputy Tom Hayes asked the Minister for Social Protection when a decision on a carer's allowance claim will issue to a person (details supplied) in County Tipperary; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [48910/12]
Amharc ar fhreagraThis application for carer’s allowance was awarded on 1st November 2012. A letter with all details of entitlement and payment has issued to the person in question.
113. Deputy John O'Mahony asked the Minister for Social Protection when a person (details supplied) in County Mayo will receive a decision on an appeal for carer's allowance; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [48911/12]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Social Welfare Appeals Office has advised me that an appeal by the person concerned was registered in that office on 11th September 2012. It is a statutory requirement of the appeals process that the relevant departmental papers and comments by the Deciding Officer on the grounds of appeal be sought. When received, the case in question will be referred to an Appeals Officer who will make a summary decision on the appeal based on documentary evidence presented or, if required, hold an oral hearing.
The Social Welfare Appeals Office functions independently of the Minister for Social Protection and of the Department and is responsible for determining appeals against decisions on social welfare entitlements.
