(Prague Monitor, Czech News Agency, Prague, 21.10.09) The criteria for the distribution of disability allowances will toughen as of January 2010 under a new directive issued by the Labour and Social Affairs Ministry, ministry spokeswoman Stepanka Filipova told CTK Wednesday.
Instead of the current system of full and partial disability pensions, the people who cannot work or whose work ability is limited as a result of their health handicap, will receive three types of pensions, under the directive, a part of the ongoing first phase of the Czech pension reform.
At present, the full disability pension goes to the disabled whose ability to work has declined by at least 66 percent. The new directive raises the limit to 70 percent, thus reducing the number of those eligible.
"The goal of the directive is not to save money on disabled people," Filipova said.
She said the current rules have become outdated as a result of medicine's development, and had to be adjusted.
According to expert studies by the Czech J.E. Purkyne Medical Society, new diagnostic and treatment methods have markedly improved the prognosis of what was formerly patients' unfavourable state.
"Modern medicine also diminishes the negative consequences [of treatment] and helps improve the quality of life and enhance [the patients'] ability to work," Filipova said.
Under the new directive, the partial disability pension, now going to the people whose work ability has decline by at least 33 percent in consequences of impaired health, will be divided into two categories.
Those whose work abilities are 35 to 49 percent lower will receive a lower pension than until now, while those with work abilities 50 to 69 percent lower will receive the sum which goes to the partially disabled now.
The changes are not to apply to the current recipients.
When assessing an applicant's eligibility to disabled pension, the authorities will consider to what extent and for how long his/her health trouble restricts his/her ability to work. The chance for the applicant's retraining and gaining a job will also be taken into account.
According to statistical figures, over 533,000 people in the 10-million Czech Republic received disability pensions this September. Out of them, 322,900 were full and 210,500 partial disability pensioners.
The average of the full and the partial monthly disability pension was 9,674 and 6,071 crowns, respectively.
The average monthly wage in the Czech Republic is about 23,000 crowns.
The number of disability pension recipients has been rising in the Czech Republic. In 2000, the authorities newly granted 39,000 of them, compared to 50,000 last year and 35,820 in the first quarters of 2009.
The rising number of disability pensioners is also due to the rising number of serious injuries with permanent consequences, including road accidents. Sometimes disability pension is sought by those who fail to gain a job for a long time.
(Prague)The coalition of Czech organisations
providing social services to the disabled disagree with
the government's plan to transfer the power of
decision-making on disability subsidies from the state to
regions, Czech National Council of Disabled People
chairman Vaclav Krasa told journalists today.
A proposal for the changes in the law on social
services is part of the package of laws related to the
government-sponsored finance reform that is to be debated
in detail by the Chamber of Deputies in mid-August.
Krasa said that the rules that would allow to
re-distribute subsidies in such a way that all disabled
persons have an equal opportunity to receive state
disability support had not been yet prepared.
The power of the provision of disability subsidies
cannot be transferred to regions without prior
corrections, he said.
"This year, the Labour and Social Affairs Ministry was
able to made corrections in the regions' decision on
subsidies that gave preference to certain service
providers, but it will not be able to do so in the
future," Krasa said.
Since the regions themselves are often the providers
of bed facilities for the disabled and disability care
they will find themselves in conflict of interests,
chairman of the Health and Social Employees' Trade Union
(OSZSP) Jiri Schlanger said, adding that due to unclear
funding the regions would be unwilling to transfer the
facilities managed by them to other providers.
The coalition fears that the transfer of powers would
mean that out-patient facilities and associations that
advise on the choice of services would continue to have
access to disability subsidies. This would bring the
process of transformation of beds in medical facilities
to social care beds to a halt.
This will finally result in the limitation of the
choice of social services that the law that has been
valid for six months guarantees to the disabled.
Last Friday, coalition representatives met Labour and
Social Affairs Minister Petr Necas who accepted their
arguments. The coalition expects to hold talks with
politicians on the need of changes in July.
Previously, Prime Minister of the three-party
coalition government Mirek Topolanek (Civic Democrats,
ODS) did not rule out the possibility of the changes in
the reform package on condition that they are approved by
all government parties.
Other members of the government are Christian
Democrats (KDU-CSL) and the Green Party.
Source
www.ceskenoviny.cz
