asked the Minister for Social Welfare when disability benefit will be paid to a person (details supplied) in County Wexford.
Written Answers. - Social Welfare Benefits.
153.
According to the records of the Department the person concerned has only 92 contributions paid on her behalf since entry into insurable employment. She was, therefore, entitled to payment of disability benefit for 52 weeks only in respect of her claim from 4 June 1985 to 5 June 1986 after which date her entitlement ceased.
In order to qualify for payment of disability benefit for longer than a continuous period of 52 weeks she would need to have 156 contributions paid on her behalf.
If she obtains at least a further 13 weeks of insurable employment for which the appropriate contributions have been paid then she may requalify for disability benefit subject to satisfying the usual conditions.
154.
asked the Minister for Social Welfare if he will now ensure that a second week's disability benefit is paid to a person (details supplied) in Dublin 12 who submitted one doctor's certificate dated for Christmas Day and New Year's Day, but only received one week's payment.
The person concerned has been in receipt of disability benefit since 17 October 1987 and is currently paid to 5 February 1988, date of the latest medical evidence received.
Payment for the period 19 December 1987 to 25 December 1987 was issued on 22 December 1987 and payment for the period 26 December 1987 to 1 January 1988 was issued on 14 January 1988.
Details of all cheques which were issued since mid-December 1987 have been issued to the person concerned. If, on examination of these details, she still feels that she did not receive payment for any particular period the Department will look further into the matter on hearing from her.
155.
asked the Minister for Social Welfare if he will ensure that disability benefit is paid to a person (details supplied) in Dublin 12 together with amounts due for previous periods and about which Deputy Gay Mitchell has been making representations for some weeks.
The person concerned claimed disability benefit from 31 January 1987 and payment was issued to 24 June 1987.
Payment was discontinued from 25 June 1987 following examination by a medical referee who expressed the opinion that she was capable of work.
She appealed against the disallowance and was examined by a different medical referee who also expressed the opinion that she was capable of work. Her case was then referred to an appeals officer who upheld the decision to disallow payment of benefit.
The decision of the appeals officer is final and can only be altered in the light of new facts or fresh evidence. No new facts or fresh evidence which would warrant a review of the claim of the person concerned have been received since the disallowance of her claim.
156.
asked the Minister for Social Welfare when the appeal for disability benefit of a person (detailed supplied) in County Louth will be heard.
Payment of disability benefit to the person concerned was disallowed from 25 January 1988 following examination by a medical referee who expressed the opinion that he was capable of work.
He appealed against the disallowance and arrangements are being made to have him examined by a different medical referee on 15 March 1988.
His entitlement to further payment of disability benefit will be reviewed in the light of medical referee's report following this examination.
158.
asked the Minister for Social Welfare the approximate new average male weekly wage in the services sector; the average unemployment assistance and benefit payment to a married man with three children; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
Information on average wages in the services sector is not available. Average gross earnings of male industrial workers was £230.67 per week in June 1987, the latest date for which figures are available. The average payment made to married men with three children on unemployment benefit or assistance is not available. However the average payment to all claimants at the end of 1987 was £53.79 for unemployment benefit and £53.62 for unemployment assistance.
159.
asked the Minister for Social Welfare whether he is prepared to employ doctors on short term contracts to examine disability benefit claimants in view of the fact that such doctor examinations can generate enormous savings for the tax payer and that several doctors have recently resigned or retired from the Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
Twenty-four medical referees are serving in my Department at present. I am conscious of the important role which the medical referee system plays in the control of benefit expenditure in respect of illness and incapacity and the staffing levels of the grade are kept under regular review by my Department in consultation with the Department of Finance. I can inform the Deputy that I am arranging for the appointment of three permanent additional referees as soon as possible in view of the cost effective nature of the work.
161.
asked the Minister for Social Welfare whether he intends to adjust the parameters of the maternity scheme for employment to take into account changes in taxation since the introduction of the scheme in 1981 and thus to eliminate the situation whereby some claimants are better off financially under the scheme than if they were in employment, when tax rebates are considered; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
Under the maternity allowance scheme for women in full time employment the rate of payment is 70% of a woman's reckonable weekly earnings in the relevant income tax year subject to a minimum payment of £76 per week for 14 weeks. The maximum amount payable is £154 per week i.e. where a woman's reckonable earnings are £220 per week or more. The minimum payment was specifically designed to cater for women on low earnings and it is in these circumstances mainly that women may receive more by way of the allowance than they would while at work. The benefit is, however, for a limited period only and is paid when the woman of necessity incurs additional expenditure with the birth of a baby. There will be no increase this year in the minimum payment.
162.
asked the Minister for Social Welfare the average duration in 1976 and 1986 of disability benefit claims for (a) claims lasting less than 1 year and (b) all claims; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
The average duration of disability benefit claims which terminated in 1976 having lasted less than one year was approximately 5.75 weeks. The corresponding figure for 1986 was 6.5 weeks.
The average duration for all claims was 13.1 weeks in 1975 and 15.3 weeks in 1986. Data for 1976 is not available.
163.
asked the Minister for Social Welfare if it is correct that Ireland is almost unique amongst OECD/EC countries in having a disability benefit scheme of open-ended duration; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
Provided a person who qualifies for disability benefit has at least 260 contributions paid, disability benefit can continue in payment for as long as he is incapable of work up to pensionable age. Where the person has been incapable of work for at least 12 months and is likely to be permanently incapable of work he has the option of claiming invalidity pension.
Social insurance arrangements in other countries for persons who are incapable of work vary considerably. It is difficult to generalise about these arrangements without examining the social security arrangements as a whole. However it is true to say that, as a general rule sickness or disability benefit in OECD/EC countries is of limited duration after which longer term pension arrangements come into operation.